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WHO  BECAME 

ENGLAND'S  GREATEST  PREACHER 


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PRINCETON  •  NEW  JERSEY 


From  the  Library  of 
Judge  Charles  Gillett  Hubbard 

McKean  Ccpxnty,  Pennsylvania 
BX  6495  . S7  S5  1392~ 
Smith,  Joseph  Manton 
The  Essex  lad  who  became 
England's  greatest  preache 


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MR      SPURGEON     IN    HIS    STUDY. 


THE    ESSEX    LAD 


WHO    BECAME 


EHGLAHD'S  GREATEST  PREACHER. 


THE  LIFE  OF 

CHARLES    HADDON    STURGEON, 

FOR  YOUNG  PEOPLE. 


BV  *s 

J.    MANTON    SMITH. 


WITH    THIRTY-FIVE  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


AMERICAN  TRACT  SOCIETY, 

150  NASSAU  STREET,   NEW  YORK. 

All  rights  reserved. 


COPYRIGHT,  1892, 
AMERICAN   TRACT   SOCIETY. 


INTRODUCTION  TO  THE  AMERICAN  EDITION. 

BY  REV.  THOMAS  ARMITAGE,  D.  D. 

The  chief  aim  of  writing  and  reading  this  book  is  to 
help  young  boys  and  girls  to  become  as  nearly  like  this 
"  Essex  boy  "  in  spirit  and  life  as  can  be.  What  he  was 
or  did  sprang  from  his  inner  being,  as  a  most  godly  disci- 
ple of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  His  very  heart  and  soul 
found  their  life  not  in  his  creed,  but  in  his  love  to  Jesus 
and  in  cheerfully  doing  what  his  Master  bade  him  to  do. 
His  hand  was  constantly  blessing  some  one  because  he 
loved  all  men,  so  that  love  with  him  was  life.  Above  all 
things  else  he  prayed  to  be  as  exact  a  copy  of  Christ  as 
he  could  be,  both  as  a  personal  Christian  and  a  preacher 
of  the  gospel.  Thus,  taking  Christ  as  his  only  model,  his 
faith,  his  hope,  and  his  love  were  bright,  tender,  and  lively, 
and  made  all  his  outer  life  real  and  earnest.  True  work 
in  the  cause  of  God  followed  as  naturally  from  his  hands 
as  fruit  from  a  healthy  tree  or  as  streams  from  a  liv- 
ing spring.  He  thought  nothing  of  being  poor  or  of 
moving  in  lowly  circles,  nothing  of  being  meanly  spoken 
of  or  wrongly  treated,  if  men  were  saved  by  his  toils  and 
God  was  honored  by  his  work.  No  matter  how  little  or 
weak  or  forsaken  any  poor  child  was,  he  looked  upon 
him  in  pity  and  tried  in  every  way  to  lift  him  up.  Lon- 
don is  a  great  city  of  four  millions  of  people,  and  when 
he  saw  so  many  thousands  of  children  there,  hungry,  in 
rags,  and  homeless,  his  eyes  melted  in  tears.  All  his 
powers  were  put  forth  to  get  them  bread  and  clothing  and 
homes,  and  after  that  he  daily  sought  by  every  winning 
act  to  make  them  true  Christians. 

A  great  many  people,  some  of  them  ministers  and 
some  private  disciples  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  wish  that  they 
were  as  great  and  as  good  as  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  and  they 
are  trying  to  copy  him,  but  they  meet  with  dead  failure. 


4  Introduction. 

The  very  fact  that  they  take  him  for  a  model  shows  that 
they  feel  that  they  are  small  and  mean  when  they  com- 
pare themselves  with  him.  They  fail,  and  ever  will,  be- 
cause they  only  imitate  his  way  of  doing  things,  without 
the  spirit,  the  life,  and  the  purity  which  he  drew  from  his 
inmost  soul.  Any  person  who  tries  to  imitate  Mr.  Spur- 
geon  will  be  bitterly  disappointed,  unless  he  is  a  real 
Spurgeon  in  character  to  begin  with.  Men  may  copy  his 
faults  and  weaknesses,  just  as  the  scholars  of  Plato,  with- 
out his  wisdom,  made  humps  on  their  shoulders  because 
he  had  a  crooked  back  ;  but  that  was  all.  If  the  young 
readers  of  this  book  would  like  to  do  Spurgeon's  work, 
they  must  first  use  his  constant  prayer,  breathe  his  humil- 
ity, and  become  full  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

The  Bohemians  tell  this  story  of  Wenceslaus,  their 
great  king.  One  bitter  winter's  night  he  went  barefoot  to 
worship  in  a  distant  church.  The  snow  and  ice  cut  his 
feet  in  the  driving  storm,  but  as  his  heart  was  full  of  the 
love  of  God,  he  pushed  on  his  way  regardless  of  pain. 
His  servant  who  attended  him  was  chilled  to  the  bone 
and  began  to  faint.  Then  the  king  told  him  to  put  his 
feet  at  each  tread  into  his  footsteps.  At  once  the  servant's 
shame  kindled  his  zeal,  and  following  in  his  prince's  tracks 
he  walked  firmly,  although  the  blood  from  his  feet  stained 
the  snow  at  every  step.  So  Mr.  Spurgeon,  from  a  child, 
planted  himself  in  the  footprints  of  his  Lord.  He  had 
Christ's  life  in  his  soul,  and  it  was  easy  for  him  to  walk  in 
Christ's  ways.  He  knew  that  he  could  not  do  Christ's 
work  unless  he  had  His  life  ;  then  he  could  walk  as  Christ 
also  walked.  So  let  the  young  readers  of  this  book  be- 
come the  same  sort  of  youths  that  the  "  Essex  lad  "  was, 
and  in  their  measure  they  will  repeat  his  life-work.  In 
that  case  this  great  preacher,  being  dead,  will  still  speak 
in  them 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  life  which  forms  the  subject  of  this  book  was,  in  many 
respect*,  like  the  Kaleidoscope,  which,  as  children,  we  were  so 
proud  to  purchase   with   our   saved-up  pennies    when   we 
attended  the  country  fair  held  on  the  village  green.     To 
some  of  us  as  boys  a  Kaleidoscope  was  the  greatest  wonder 
of  the  world.    Though  plain  in  its  exterior,  it  had  only  to  be 
put  to  the  eye  to  reveal  a  marvellous  array  of  beauties  and 
colours,  which  fascinated  and  arrested  our  attention.     Its 
variations  were  so  vivid  and  charming,  that  we  immediately 
became  enamoured  of  it,  yet  its  charms  were  all  confined 
within   the  limitations   of  one  small   circle.      Almost   like 
magic  the  old  Kaleidoscope  at  every  touch  and  turn  ex- 
hibited new  pictures  by  different  combinations  of  the  same 
materials.     The  schoolboy  might  leave  it  to  attend  to  his 
lessons,  and  older  lads  might  be   called  away  to  perform 
their  lawful  pursuits  of  life,  but  whenever  they  returned  to 
it  they  always  found  some  pleasing  and  captivating  picture 
awaiting   them.      It   was  like  this  with  the  life  of  C  H. 
Spurgeon,  whom  the  Lord  called  even  as  a  boy  to  proclaim 
his   message   to   a    sinful   world.      Deliberately   restricting 
himself  to  the  proclamation  of  a  few  primary  truths,  he  yet 
combined  them  with  such  remarkable  variety  and  freshness 
that  there  was  always  a  new  charm  in  the  message  which 
he  delivered  to  the  people. 

Like  Moses,  for  nearly  forty  years  this  faithful  servant  was 
God's  chosen  leader  of  a  great  company  of  redeemed 
people.  No  book  can  fully  describe  the  marvellous  power 
of  his  unique  life.  Under  his  preaching  thousands  of 
sinners  were  converted  into  saints,  and  afterwards  lived  to 
bring  glory  to  the  Lord  Jesus    Christ. 

Like  Abraham,  he  was  led  forth  by  a  divine  hand  from 


6  Introduction. 

the  place  of  his  nativity  to  become  a  great  father  in  Israel, 
and  God  used  him  to  overthrow  many  idols  and  gain 
many  victories. 

Like  David,  he  was  endued  with  mighty  power  while  yet 
a  ruddy  lad,  and  was  able  to  infuse  courage  into  the  heans 
and  lives  of  many  a  faint-hearted  soldier  of  Christ. 

Like  Samuel,  he  heard  the  Lord's  voice  when  quite  a 
youth,  and  hid  nothing  of  the  things  that  God  had  revealed 
to  him  ;  as  he  grew,  he  found  favour  both  with  God  and 
with  men,  and  "  the  Lord  was  with  him,  and  did  let  none  of 
his  words  fall  to  the  ground." 

After  reading  all  the  sketches  that  can  be  published  of 
such  a  life,  the  verdict  of  those  who  knew  the  man  must  be 
the  same  as  that  of  the  Queen  of  Sheba,  after  she  had  seen 
the  wisdom  and  glory  of  Solomon — "  Behold  the  half  was  not 
told  me." 

This  little  volume  is  a  new  arrangement  of  the  Kaleido- 
scopic materials  of  this  varied  life.  It  seeks  to  make  vivid 
those  aspects  of  it  which  are  of  more  immediate  interest  to 
young  people,  in  the  hope  that  many  of  them  may  follow  in 
the  path  which  C.  H.  Spurgeon  as  a  lad  so  virtuously  and 
vigorously  pursued. 


-^ 

AUTHOR'S  NOTE. 
Should  this  book  be  presented  to  any  young  person,  it 
would  be  well  to  fill  in  the  name  of  the  boy  or  girl,  in  the  letters 
on  pages  134,  135  and  138,  139.  As  two  of  my  own  children 
were  led  to  trust  the  Lord  Jesus  by  means  of  these  letters, 
lac-similes  of  the  originals  have  been  inserted  in  this  book, 
with  the  prayerful  hope  that  many  others  may  obtain  a 
similar  blessing.    Prayer  is  desired  that  such  may  be  the  cas~. 


PR  EFACE. 


An  old  ma:;  of  eighty-two  is  naturally  not  much  inclined  to 
write  a  preface  to  a  book ;  but  as  my  friend  Mr.  Manton 
Smith  desires  me  to  introduce  his  sketch  of  the  wonderful 
life  and  work  of  my  son  Charles,  I  am  glad  to  accede  to  his 
request. 

The  later  years  of  my  dear  son  were  rich  in  blessing,  and 
his  young  days  were  in  many  respects  worthy  of  imitation. 
He  was  always  a  remarkable  boy,  and  early  gave  promise  of 
future  greatness.  As  this  book  is  for  young  people,  I  would 
impress  upon  them  to  follow  him  in  his  respect  and  obedi- 
ence to  his  parents,  and  in  his  love  for  his  home. 

And  I  would  urge  the  mothers  who  may  read  this  book 
to  be  as  careful  in  the  training  of  their  children  for  Christ 
as  was  his  saintly  mother  who  is  now  in  heaven.  I  had 
something  to  do  with  his  up-bringing,  but  I  was  so  fre- 
quently from  home  that  more  of  the  responsibility  was 
thrown  upon  my  dear  wife,  and  with  constant  and  prayerful 
thought  she  nobly  fulfilled  the  task.  Now  she  has  met  her 
dear  son  in  glory  and  rejoices  with  him.  I  too  shall  soon 
join  them  and  mingle  my  praises  with  theirs. 

I  cannot  enough  magnify  the  grace  of  God  who  "gave  me 
two  such  sons  as  Charles  and  James,  and  who  has  used 
them  both  so  greatly  in  his  service.  Each  of  my  brothers 
had  two  sons,  and  I  had  two,  but  only  mine  became 
preachers  of  the  Word,  following  in  their  father's  and  their 
grandfather's  footsteps.  Both  my  dear  sons  have  served 
God  faithfully,  and  it  is  a  great  joy  to  me  to  see  the  younger 
continuing  with  such  success  the  work  which  his  brother 
has  left.  May  the  Lord  spare  him  long  and  strengthen  him 
greatly  ] 


8  Preface. 

Last  Friday  I  was  able  to  attend  the  closing  meeting  of 
the  Conference  of  the  Pastors'  College  men,  and  to  join 
them  in  remembering  the  Lord's  death.  I  felt  like  a  grand- 
father to  all  the  brethren,  for  are  they  not  my  son's 
children  ?  May  God  bless  them  all  f  My  heart  was  made 
to  dance  for  very  joy  as  we  gathered  around  that  table.  So 
intense  were  my  feelings  that  if  I  had  had  j  voice  like  my 
friend  Manton  Smith  I  would  have  burst  forth  singing  a 
verse  of  Dr  Watts'  hymn  : 

"  My  willing  soul  would  stay 

In  such  a  frame  as  this, 
And  sit  and  sing  herself  away 

To  everlasting  bliss." 

My  cup  is  full ;  I  am  an  old  man  now,  but  I  still  need 
the  same  Saviour  as  much  as  ever  I  did,  to  save  me  from 
my  sins.  Jesus  Christ  is  everything  to  me.  I  have  preached 
the  Gospel  for  many  years  and  I  do  not  want  another.  In 
the  faith  of  it  I  have  lived,  and  in  the  faith  of  it  I  shall  die. 
My  father's  God  is  mine ;  He  is  my  sons'  God  too,  and  my 
grandsons  are  following  in  the  same  path 

Now,  Lord,  lettest  thou  thy  servant  depart  in  peace,  for 
mine  eyes  have  seen  thy  salvation. 

May  God  bless  this  book  and  its  author  and  all  who  may 
read  its  pages.     So  prays — 

The  honoured  father  of  his  honoured  son, 


z^/^^^^k 


•> 


Dumfries  Vilt.a. 
West  Croydon, 

gth  May,  1892. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAF 

PAGB 

I. 

About  Grandfathers...          ...          

9 

II. 

About  a  Baby            ...         ...         ...         ...         , 

••       15 

III. 

A  Little  Boy  in  a  Big  House 

..       18 

IV. 

The  Essex  Lad  in  the  Essex  Village 

..       25 

V. 

A  Remarkable  Prophecy     ... 

••       35 

VI. 

Home  and  School     ... 

••       39 

VII. 

The  Siege  at  Artillery  Lane           ...         ... 

..       49 

VIII. 

A  New  Man  at  Newmarket 

••       57 

IX. 

Under  the  shadow  of  the  University 

..      62 

X. 

The  Beginning  of  Miracles  ... 

..      69 

XI 

The  Village  Pastor  ... 

..      76 

XII. 

From  the  Shires  to  the  City           

..      S3 

XIII. 

Popularity  and  Panic 

..      89 

XIV. 

The  Great  Tabernacle          ...         ...         ... 

..      95 

XV. 

The  Prince  of  Preachers      ...          

..     100 

XVI. 

A  Printed  Pulpit       ...         

..     no 

XVII. 

His  Ready  Wit         

...     113 

XVIII. 

Mr.  Greatheart          ...         

...     123 

XIX. 

The  School  ot  the  Prophets 

..     129 

XX. 

The  Nursery  of  the  Church... 

■•     133 

XXI. 

The  Orphan  Homes  .. 

..     140 

XXII. 

Nightingale  Lane  and  Beulah  Hill 

..     i"?o 

XXLII. 

By  the  Margin  of  ihe  Blue  Sea      ...         ... 

..    1*1 

XXIV. 

The  Sea  of  Glass  mingled  with  Fire          ,M 

..   105 

CHAPTER    I. 

%bovd  Grandfathers. 

AVE  >ou  ever  been  in  a  prison? 
5  I   can    quite    fancy   that   some   of   my 

pj>ij  g  young  readers  will  think  this  is  a  queer 
0^^)(^r&  question  to  begin  a  book  with.  But  then 
there  is  a  reason  for  starting  there,  which  you  will 
find  out  presently. 

We  must  remember  that  the  prison-house  is  not 
necessarily  a  disgrace  to  anyone.  It  is  the  crime 
which  takes  people  there  that  disgraces  them,  not 
the  prison.  He  who  goes  into  prison  with  a  good 
character  may  leave  it  even  better  than  when  he 
entered,  especially  if  he  suffers  for  conscience  sake. 

Joseph,  who  knew  the  Lord  in  his  youth,  was  cast 
into  the  Egyptian  prison  ;  but  it  only  proved  for  him 
a  passage  to  the  king's  palace.  Peter,  the  bold 
preacher,  was  thrust  into  prison  because  it  pleased 
the  people  ;  but  God  sent  a  new  and  unknown  warder 
to  unloose  his  chains,  and  bring  him  forth  to  a  prayer- 
meeting  while  the  soldiers  in  charge  of  him  were  still 
sleeping  within  the  gaol.  Paul  and  Silas,  two  evange- 
lists sent  forth  by  God,  were  also  put  in  prison ; 
but  their  songs  at  midnight  enabled  them  to  forget 
their  sufferings,  and  through  their  preaching  the  gaoler 
and  all  his  family  were  converted,  and  were  afterwards 


10  The  Essex  Lad. 

baptized.  John  Bunyan,  the  Bedford  tinker,  was  sent 
to  gaol  for  preaching  the  gospel ;  but  while  imprisoned 
he  wrote  The  Pilgrims  Progress,  which  we  all  love 
so  much. 

But  I  want  now  to  tell  you  of  another  noble  man 
who  was  cast  into  prison.  In  the  year  1677,  there 
lay  in  Chelmsford  gaol  for  fifteen  weeks,  for  con- 
science sake,  a  godly  old  man  named  Job.  He  only 
had  a  pallet  of  straw  to  lie  upon,  though  the  weather 
was  bitterly  cold.  Like  his  namesake,  Job  the  patri- 
arch, he  was  patient  while  suffering  for  truth  and  for 
God.  This  good  man's  surname  was  Spurgeon,  and 
he  was  the  great-grandfather  of  the  great-grandfather 
of  the  late  C.  H.  Spurgeon,  whose  father  is  also  a 
great-grandfather,  because  Mr.  Spurgeon,  before  he 
was  called  away  to  heaven,  was  himself  a  grand- 
father. 

Now,  I  wonder  if  my  young  readers  could  coum 
how  many  fathers  that  makes  altogether  to  succeed 
Job  Spurgeon.  When  you  have  quite  finished  your 
lessons  for  school  to-morrow,  just  oblige  me  by  sitting 
down,  and  working  this  out. 

This  family  of  Spurgeon  was  descended  from  Dutch 
forefathers,  who  fled  from  Holland  for  refuge  from 
the  Duke  of  Alva,  when  he  cruelly  persecuted  the 
saints  of  God  in  that  country  during  the  sixteenth 
century.  Though  unknown  to  fame  at  that  time,  the 
Spurgeons  stuck  like  leeches  to  the  gospel  for  which 
thev  had  left  their  native  soil,  and  lived  and  died  in 
the  faith  which  lightens  life,  and  which  brightens 
death 

James  Spurgeon,  who  was  the  Independent  minister 
at  Stambourne,  was  the  grandfather  of  the  Essex  lad 


About  Grandfathers. 


II 


who  became  England's  Greatest  Preacher.  He  was 
what  is  called  a  Calvinist,  which  means  that  he  held 
and  preached   the   truth  in  the  same  way  as  Calvin 


MR.    SPURGEON  S    GRANDFATHER. 


did  -in  Geneva  many  years  ago.  He  was  a  preacher 
of  considerable  ability,  and  continued  to  preach 
until  he  was  88  years  old.     Just   fancy  you  see  the 


12  The  Essex  Lad. 

old  man  ,  yonder  he  comes  down  the  quiet  village, 
wearing  a  dress  cravat,  a  frilled  shirt,  and  with 
very  deep  pockets  in  his  waistcoat,  which  usually 
contained  a  packet  oi  sweets  for  the  children.  With 
his  kne^  breeches,  silk  stockings,  and  the  bright 
buckles  on  his  shoes,  he  must,  have  looked  a  very 
venerable  old  gentleman  indeed.  So  he  lived*  out 
a  life  of  usefulness  amidst  his  flock,  and  on  his 
death-bed  he  talked  more  cheerfully  than  many  do 
in  robust  health.  He  realized  the  nearness  and 
preciousness  of  Christ  to  such  an  extent  that  he 
comforted  all  that  were  around  him,  till  he  quietly 
fell  asleep  on  the  bosom  of  Jesus. 

His  grandson  and  namesake,  Pastor  James  A. 
Spurgeon,  the  esteemed  brother  of  the  great  man 
whom  this  book  is  about,  who  is  still  with  us,  gave 
at  the  Pastors'  College  Conference,  1892,  some 
reminiscences  of  the  grand  old  man.  He  said  :  "  My 
grandfather  was  one  01  the  most  earnest  preachers 
that  I  have  ever  known,  and  was  very  much  honoured 
in  the  district  where  he  lived.  He  had  a  magnificent 
voice.  I  remember  him  giving  me  the  first  notion  of 
a  joke.  My  grandfather  was  of  the  family  build,  and 
someone  said  to  him, 

"  '  Mr.  Spurgeon,  how  much  do  you  weigh  ?  ' 

"  *  Well,'  he  said,  '  that  will  all  depend  upon  where 
you  take  me.  Ii  weighed  in  the  balances,  I  am  afraid 
I  should  be  found  wanting  ;  but  in  the  pulpit  they 
tell  me  that  I  am  heavy  enough.' 

"  There  followed  a  ripple  of  laughter,  and  in  my 
youthful  mind  I  wondered  what  they  were  laughing 
at.  I  began  to  think,  and  then  there  dawned  upon 
me   a  second   meaning,  and,  as   if  I  had   been   born 


About  Grandfathers, 


13 


across  the  Tweed,  some  time  afterwards  I  laughed 
too.  That  was  my  first  joke  ;  I  did  not  know  that 
there  was  such  a  thing  in  the  world  before  that.  It 
is  very  pleasant  to  remember  that  my  grandfather 
could  poke  a  little  fun  at  his  own  expense.  I  have 
heard  his  grandson  do  it  since." 

The  old  Manse  of  Stambourne,  in  which  he  lived, 
was  large,  but  not  lofty  ;   eight  windows  were  to  be 


THE   OLD    MANSE,    STAMBOURNE. 

seen  in  the  front,  but,  as  the  Irishman  says,  only  four 
of  them  were  visible  ;  the  others  were  blocked  up  with 
plaster,  to  save  the  absurd  window-tax  which  was 
levied  in  those  days.  The  entrance-hall  was  bigger 
than  many  modern  parlours ;  it  had  a  brick  floor,  which 
was  carefully  and  constantly  sprinkled  with  fresh 
sand.  It  was  a  bonnie  house  for  a  boy  to  live  in  ; 
there  was  plenty  of  room  for  him  to  run  about,  and 
the  pantry  and  larder,  the  dairy  and  cheese-room,  the 


H 


The  Essex  Lad. 


bedrooms  and  box-room,  gave  plenty  of  scope  to 
youthful  energy  ;  so  that  a  boy,  if  such  there  had 
been,  might  have  had  continual  change  within  the 
walls  of  the  old  Stambourne  parsonage.  There  was, 
in  fact,  just  such  a  boy,  who  often  roamed  over  the 
roomy  dwelling,  and  of  his  birth  we  are  going  to 
speak  in  the  next  chapter.  I  hope  it  will  not  be 
such  a  sleepy  chapter  as  this. 


MR.  spurgeon's  grandmother. 


CHAPTER    II. 

gtboiit  a   ^3 a b 23 , 

^^^^s|HE    old    village    clock   in     Kelvedon    had 
scarcely  struck  the  hour  of  four  in   the 
morning  on  the  19th  of  June,  1834,  when 
lo  !    there   came    the    first   peep   of    day 
piercing  through  the  tall  poplar  trees  which  surround 
this  secluded  hamlet.     Suddenly,  as  if  at  the  magic 
stroke  of  a  conductor's  batdn,  there  pealed   forth  a 
mighty   chorus   of    praise    from    hundreds    of    little 
winged  creatures  who  all  night  had  been  hidden  away 
in  their  warm,  cosy  nests,  and  now  awakened  to  greet 
the  new  day,  until  the  air  was  vocal  with  their  songs. 
But  before  that  day's   sun  had    set,  and    before  the 
little  songsters  had  chanted  their  evening  praise,  there 
was  another  cry  heard  in  the  little  village  of  Kelvedon, 
not  perhaps  so  musical  to  some  ears  as  that  of  the 
blackbirds  :  yet  it  was  a  sound  which  declared  that  a 
new  life  had   that   day  been  given   by   God   to    the 
world.     What  a    life   it  has    proved    to   be,  eternity 
alone  will  reveal ! 

There  were  no  bells  rung  on  earth  because  this 
child  had  been  born  in  Kelvedon  ;  but  the  mother's 
heart  was  made  to  leap  for  joy  at  the  thought  of  God's 
goodness  to  her,  and  the  godly  father  also  rejoiced 
and  praised  his  Maker  for  the  gift  that  day  bestowed  : 


16 


The  Essex  Lad. 


though  little  did  the  father  or  mother  know  what 
future  joy  awaited  them  by  means  of  the  life  just 
entrusted  to  their  care.  Surely  that  day  the  angels 
above  would  sing  their  songs  of  praise  because  a 
new  voice  was  heard  on  earth — a  voice  which  would 
soon  become  like  a  trumpet-call  for  Christ  the  Lord, 
In  the  tidy  cottage  in  the  village  dwelt  the  godly 


MR.    SPURGEOX  S    BIRTHPLACE,    KELVEDON,    ESSEX. 


father  and  mother,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  John  Spurgeon,  and 
their  new  God-given  treasure.  Happily  they  were 
both  well  acquainted  with  the  good  old  Guide-book  ; 
it  had  proved  for  many  years  a  lamp  unto  their  feet, 
and  a  light  unto  their  path  ;  they  had  read  many 
times  from  this  inspired  Word,  words  addressed  to 
another,  but  which  they  might  now  well  apply  to 
themselves  : — "  Take  this  child  away,  and  nurse  it  for 


About  a  Baby. 


17 


me,  and  I  will  give  thee  thy  wages."  It  was  for  the 
preciousness  of  these  sayings  of  this  Book  of  books 
that  their  own  ancestors  had  endured  persecution  ; 
and  we  can  well  imagine  them  reading  with  new 
unction  such  a  passage  as  this  :  "  Whoso  shall  receive 
one  such  little  child  in  My  name  receiveth  Me." 
Thus  it  came  to  pass  that  in  a  small  house,  which 
is  still  standing  in  the  obscure  country  village  of 
Kelvedon,  the  first  year  of  the  life  of  the  boy 
who  was  named  CHARLES  Haddon  SPURGEON 
was  spent.  At  his  death,  nearly  fifty-eight  years 
afterwards,  he  was  pronounced  by  Archdeacon 
Sinclair,  from  the  pulpit  of  St.  Paul's  Cathedral, 
London,  to  have  been  "  England's  Greatest  Living 
Preacher." 


ST.    PAUL  S    CATHEDKAL. 


CHAPTER    III. 

%  %\\\\t  ^og  in  a   gig  §ffust 

HEN  chubby  little  Charlie,  as  his  dear  Aunt 
Ann  possibly  called  him,  was  ten  months 
old,  his  father  and  mother  removed  from 
Kelvedon  to  Colchester ;  and  about  four 
months  after  that  date,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  James  Spurgeon, 
of  Stambourne,  went  over  to  Colchester  to  visit  their 
son  and  daughter  and  see  their  little  grandson. 
When  they  saw  him  they  took  such  a  liking  to  the 
plump  little  fellow,  that  they  persuaded  the  father 
and  mother  to  allow  him  to  return  with  them  to 
Stambourne,  assuring  them  that  they  would  only  be 
too  pleased  to  have  the  entire  charge  of  him,  and  to 
care  for  his  welfare.  So  it  was  arranged  that  the  boy 
should  go,  and  for  the  next  few  years  his  aunt  and  his 
grandfather  and  grandmother  were  entrusted  with  his 
training  ;  and  right  well  did  they  see  to  it.  Charlie 
was  the  first  grandson  in  their  family,  and  you  know 
what  a  fuss  grandfathers  and  grandmothers  always 
make  of  such  a  boy.  The  child,  eighteen  months  old, 
was  thus  early  in  life  transplanted  from  the  town  house 
to  the  country  ;  and  he  remained  with  his  grand- 
parents until  he  was  between  five  and  six  years  old. 

Seeing  so  much  of  this  Essex  lad's  early  life  was 
spent  at  Stambourne,  it  may  be  well  to  give  a 
description  of  the  place. 

The  village  is  an  entirely  agricultural  one,  having 
no   manufactures  nor  any  large  business  premises  of 


A  Little  Boy  in  a  Big  House. 


19 


any  kind.  The  population  is  between  four  and  five 
hundred,  and  there  are  about  one  hundred  and  five 
cottages  in  it.  There  is  only  one  blacksmith,  one 
shoemaker,  and  two  or  three  carpenters,  in  the  whole 
village  ;  and  there  is  neither  doctor,  chemist,  butcher, 
nor  policeman  within  three  miles. 

The  pretty  old  Church  is  quietly  situated  by  the 
roadside,  surrounded  by  some  fine  trees,  which  give  it 


STAMBOURNE   CHURCH. 

a  very  picturesque  and  attractive  appearance.  The 
little  boy  must  often  have  looked  with  admiration  on 
its  massive  tower,  and  perhaps  have  climbed  to  the 
top  of  it  to  get  a  view  of  the  surrounding  country. 

There  is  also'  in  the  village  a  Congregational  Chapel, 
which  stands  near  the  minister's  residence.  It  has 
a  good  burial-ground,  and  also  stables  and  sheds 
for  the  horses  and  vehicles  of  those  members  of  the 


20  The  Essex  Lad. 

congregation  who  drive  in  from  a  distance.  It  is 
shaded  by  lofty  chestnut  trees  and  limes,  which,  when 
covered  with  blossom  in  the  spring,  together  with  an 
abundance  of  lilacs,  laburnum,  and  the  flowers  of  the 
minister's  garden,  lrrke  up  a  very  charming  scene. 
It  is  a  lively  spot  on  Sabbath-days,  as  troops  of 
children  flock  to  the  Sunday-school,  and  others  con- 
gregate from  the  hamlets  around. 

In  the  hall  of  the  grandfather's  old  house  there 
stood  a  fine  big  rocking-horse,  so  safe  that  on  it  even 
a  Member  of  Parliament  might  have  been  sure  he 
could  keep  his  seat.  On  the  back  of  this  fine  grey 
charger  young  Spurgeon  must  have  been  rocked  for 
many  an  hour  by  his  devoted  aunt. 

In  the  front  of  the  house,  half  secluded  by  a  large 
shrub,  there  was  a  room  which  delighted  the  little 
boy,  for  the  mangle  was  kept  there,  and  this  magic 
machine  did  duty  for  the  whole  parish.  Many  a 
short  ride  would  Master  Charlie  get  on  the  top  of  the 
mangle  while  the  villagers  were  pressing  their  clothes. 
In  this  same  room  the  kneading-trough  was  kept, 
and  on  the  shelf  beside  it  in  the  corner  of  the  room 
there  was  always  "something  nice  for  the  boy,"  placed 
within  reach  of  his  tiny  hand. 

The  dairy  was  another  place  where  the  young 
child  used  often  to  go,  and  here  he  frequently, 
to  his  great  delight,  obtained  a  cheesecake  and  a 
draught  of  new  milk. 

Even  on  rainy  days  he  found  great  delight  at  the 
old  Manse,  for  at  the  front  door  the  rain  ran  off 
the  roof  of  the  porch  into  a  tub  underneath,  and  after 
he  had  watched  the  drops  dripping  to  his  heart's  con- 
tent, the  little  genius  used  to  float  cotton  reels,  like 


A  Little  Boy  in  a  Big  House, 


21 


tiny  ships,  on  this  miniature  sea.  Long  after  he  had 
grown  to  be  a  man,  he  preached  a  beautiful  sermon 
on  the  text,  "  There  go  the  ships  "  (I  wonder  could 
you  find  this  text  in  your  Bible  ?),  but  his  first  lessons 
in  navigation  were  learned  at  his  grandfather's  door. 

The  stables  and  sheds  at  the  back  of  the  Manse 
were  fine  places  for  play.  Every  gig  was  mounted  in 
its  turn,  and  its  merits  proclaimed  by  the  minister's 
young  grandson,  but  never  on  Sunday,  for  that  day 
was  kept  very  sacredly  at  the  Old  Manse. 

The  cupboard  under  the  stairs  was  a  grand  hiding- 
place  for  him,  and  often  he  would  dig  over  and  over 
the  sand  which  was  kept  there  for  sprinkling  the 
brick  floors.  With  such  heaps  ot  sand,  boys  are 
always  willing  to  lend  a  hand, 

But,  perhaps,  the  most  charming  room  01  the 
house  was  the  best  parlour,  on  the  right-hand  side 
of  the  front  door.  Outside  the 
window  there  grew  a  fine  large 
rose-tree.  Its  fragrance  filled  the 
room  when  the  windows  were 
opened,  and  as  the  window-frames 
did  not  fit  very  well,  its  beautiful 
and  gentle  life  found  its  way  right 
into  the  room,  and  sent  its  green 
leaves  and  new  buds  into  the  house, 
as  if  to  say,  "  I  am  come  to  help 
furnish  your  best  parlour,  and  save  you  the  trouble  of 
gathering  the  flowers."  That  was  very  nice,  was  it  not  ? 
On  the  mantel-shelf  in  this  room  there  also  stood 
a  bottle,  which,  for  a  long  time,  was  a  standing 
wonder  to  this  little  boy.  The  boy  saw  that  it 
contained   a   large    ap[  le,  but   how  the  apple  could 


22  The  Essex  Lad. 

have  got  inside  the  bottle  he  could  not  understand.. 
You  may  be  sure  that  he  was  not  satisfied  until  he 
found  out  the  secret 

So  one  day  he  said,  "  How  did  the  apple  get  inside 
the  bottle,  grandfather  ? " 

"  Find  out,"  said  the  old  man.  And  the  boy  could 
get  nothing  more  from  his  grandfather. 


MAKING   A   £>ISCOVERY 

He  then  asked  his  grandmother,  who  gave  him  the 
same  kind  of  answer.  He  next  examined  the  bottle 
to  see  if  there  were  any  joins  and  marks  where  it  had 
been  put  together,  but  he  could  not  see  any,  so  he 
asked  his  grandfather  again. 

His  grandfather  still  said,  "  Find  out." 

When   quite  alone,   he    put    on   his   grandmother's 


A  Little  Boy  in  a  Big  House.  23 

spectacles,  and  looked  carefully  into  the  bottle  to  see 
if  the  apple  had  been  put  in  in  sections  ;  but  no,  it 
was  quite  whole. 

One  day,  however,  he  walked  down  his  grand- 
father's garden,  and  saw  a  bottle  tied  on  to  one  of 
the  branches  of  an  apple-tree,  and  a  tiny  little  apple 
growing  at  the  end  of  the  branch  inside  the  bottle. 
He  had  now  discovered  the  secret,  and  ran  into  the 
house,  saying, — 

"  Now  I  know  how  that  big  apple  got  into  that 
bottle  on  the  shelf;  it  grew  inside'' 

I  fancy  I  see  his  dear  old  grandfather  taking  the 
little  boy  on  to  his  knee,  and  feeling  quite  proud  to 
think  he  had  discovered  the  secret  himself.  He 
would  then,  no  doubt,  seek  to  impress  some  spiritual 
lesson  upon  him,  and  to  fix  it  in  his  memory  by 
telling  him  that  the  cold  frost  might  come  and  nip 
some  of  the  other  apples,  but  this  one  was  safe, 
because  it  was  inside  the  bottle. 

"  Now,  Charlie,  my  dear/'  he  might  have  said,  "  I 
want  you  always  to  remember  that  the  Sunday- 
school  and  the  Church  are  like  this  bottle :  they 
shield  many  who  enter  them  while  they  are  young 
from  a  cruel,  cold  world,  and  from  many  blasts  of 
temptation." 

Another  day,  the  grandfather  would  take  the  little 
boy  on  his  knee  and  tell  him  how  a  good,  godly  man 
named  Havers,  who  used  to  live  in  Stambourne, 
was  persecuted  for  his  religion,  and  that  one  day, 
receiving  friendly  warning  of  an  intended  attempt 
to  apprehend  him,  and  finding  men  were  on  his 
track,  he  took  refuge  in  a  malt-house,  and  crept  into 
the  empty  kiln,  where  he   lay  down.     Immediately 


24  The  Essex  Lad. 

after,  he  saw  a  spider  lower  itself  across  the  narrow 
entrance  by  which  he  had  got  in,  thus  fixing  the  first 
line  of  what  was  soon  wrought  into  a  larse  and 
beautiful  web.  The  weaver  and  the  web,  placed 
directly  between  him  and  the  light,  were  very  con- 
spicuous. He  was  so  much  struck  with  the  skill  and 
diligence  of  the  spider,  and  so  much  absorbed  in 
watching  her  work,  that  he  forgot  his  own  danger. 
By  the  time  the  network  was  completed,  crossing  and 
re-crossing  the  mouth  of  the  kiln  in  every  direction, 
his  pursuers  came  into  the  malt-house  to  search  for 
him.  He  noted  their  steps,  and  listened  to  their 
cruel  words  while  they  looked  about.  Then  they 
came  close  to  the  kiln,  and  he  overheard  one  say 
to  another:  "  It's  no  use  to  look  in  there;  the  old 
villain  can  never  be  there:  look  at  that  spider's  zveb ; 
lie  could  never  have  got  in  there  without  breaking  it." 
Without  further  search  they  went  to  seek  elsewhere, 
and  he  escaped  safely  out  of  their  hands. 

By  such  incidents  as  these,  amid  the  scenes  where 
they  took  place,  the  mind  of  the  boy  would  be  much 
impressed. 

But  very  soon  after  he  had  discovered  how  the 
apple  got  into  the  bottle,  and  had  listened  to  such 
wise  words  from  his  grandfather,  he  returned  home 
to  his  parents  at  Colchester  for  a  time.  Here  he 
attended  a  private  school  for  little  boys,  kept  by 
Mrs.  Cook,  a  captain's  wife.  I  need  not  tell  you  that 
it  was  not  the  Captain  Cook  who  first  sailed  round 
the  world,  but  another.  Here  he  made  rapid  progress 
in  his  lessons,  and  after  school  hours  he  used  to  play 
with  his  little  brother  James,  whom  God  had  given  to 
his  father  and  mother  while  he  was  at  Stambourne. 


CHAPTER     IV. 

I$lic  dH'icx  Jfad  in  ih<>  <B$sfle  Siltagc. 


»-^rrTrrv-^7^=^ 


HEN  young  Spurgeon  was  called  home  to 
Colchester  to  commence  his  education, 
he  continued  to  pay  frequent  and  pro- 
longed visits  to  his  grandfather  and 
grandmother  at  Stambourne. 

It  was  during  these  periodical  visits  that  his  grand- 
mother offered  him  a  farthing  each  for  every  hymn 
he  could  correctly  repeat  to  her  from  memory.  At 
once  he  set  to  work,  and  so  quickly  did  he  learn  them 
that  his  grandmother  said  : 

"  Charlie,  I  see  danger  of  becoming  bankrupt,  and 
I  must  reduce  the  price  to  a  penny  a  dozen."  Even 
at  this  price  he  committed  to  memory  almost  the 
whole  of  Dr.  Watts'  hymns. 

But  a  sudden  stop  came  to  his  hymn-learning. 
His  grandfather,  being  annoyed  by  the  rats  from  a 
neighbouring  farm,  offered  his  young  grandson  a 
shilling  a  dozen  for  all  the  rats  he  could  catch.  Down 
went  the  hymn  book,  and  the  boy's  attention  was 
henceforth  devoted  to  the  rats,  until  he  caught  so 
many  that,  for  a  boy,  he  got  quite  rich.  Serving 
grandfather  in  this  way  seemed  to  pay  the  best  at 
the  time,  but  in  after  years  he  said  that  his  grand- 
mother's hymns  at  a  farthing  a  dozen  were  a  far  more 


26  The  Essex  Lad. 

profitable  investment  than  his  grandfather's  rats  at  a 
shilling. 

When  you  read  his  sermons,  as  I  hope  you  will 
often  do,  you  will  notice  how  aptly  he  was  able  to 
quote  verses  of  hymns  in  them,  and  how  interesting 
this  makes  them.  In  most  cases  these  are  from  the 
hymns  he  learnt  for  his  grandmother.  A  mine  of 
wealth  was  stored  up  in  his  memory  in  this  way. 

He  once  said  to  me,  "  No  matter  on  what  subject  I 
preach,  I  can  even  now,  in  the  middle  of  any  sermon, 
quote  some  verse  of  a  hymn  in  harmony  with  the 
subject  ;  the  hymns  have  remained  with  me,  while 
those  old  rats  for  years  have  passed  away,  and  the 
shillings  I  earned  by  them  have  been  spent  long 
ago." 


CANDLESTICK,    SNUFFERS,    AND    EXTINGUISHER. 

And  in  times  of  sickness  he  was  often  comforted  in 
his  mature  years  by  the  hymns  he  learnt  in  his  boy- 
hood days. 

The  room  in  the  Stambourne  Manse,  where  they  sat 
at  night,  was  not  a  well  lighted  place  ;  for  candles, 
being  costly,  were  used  with  care  in  those  days. 
Many  and  many  a  time  did  young  Spurgeon  sit  on 
the  floor  silently  reading  a  big  book,  by  the  aid  of  the 
fire-light,  while  his  grandfather   was  busy   preparing 


The  Essex  Lad  in  the  Essex   Village.  27 

his  sermon,  with  the  rush-light  flickering  on  his  small 
desk.  The  snuffers  were  an  important  article  of 
furniture  which  always  accompanied  candles  in  those 
days.  Sometimes  the  snuffing  operation  was  per- 
formed by  little  Charlie  himself,  and  now  and  then  he 
would  snuff  the  light  a  little  too  low,  and  leave  his 
poor  grandfather  in  the  dark,  while  the  good-natured 
old  gentleman  had  to  feel  about  for  the  flint  and  steel 
with  which  to  re-light  his  tall  tallow  candle. 


FLINT   AND    STEEL,    TINDER-BOX    AND    TINDER. 

On  one  occasion  the  boy  hung  a  pound  of  these 
candles  over  the  clothes-horse,  in  front  of  a  blazing 
fire,  and  when  what  he  had  done  was  discovered,  there 
remained  nothing  of  the  candles  but  a  mass  of  tallow 
on  the  floor,  and  the  dripping  wicks  hanging  where 
the  candles  had  been.  In  after  years,  Mr.  Spurgeon 
used  this  incident  as  an  illustration  in  a  popular 
lecture  which  he  gave,  having  all  sorts  of  lights  and 
lamps  around  him  on  the  platform,  and  which  is  now 
published  in  a  little  book  full  of  pictures,  entitled 
Sermons  in  Candles.  Anyone  who  wants  to  know 
more  about  it,  can  find  it  in  that  book. 

A  dark  room  at  the  top  of  the  house,  was  the 
favourite  haunt  of  the  studious  boy,     Although  it  was 


28 


The  Essex  Lad. 


a  dark  den,  it  contained  books,  and  this  made  it  like  a 
gold  mine  to  Master  Charlie.  Therein  was  the  promise 
fulfilled  :  "  I  will  give  thee  treasures  of  darkness."  It 
was  here  he  "  first  struck  up  acquaintance  with  the 
martyrs,  and  specially  with  'Old  Bonner'  who  burned 
them  ;  next  with  Bunyan  and  his  '  Pilgrim '  ;  and 
further  on,  with  the  great  masters  of  Scriptural  theo- 
logy, with  whom  no  moderns  are  worthy  to  be  named 
in  the  same  day." 


THE   OLD    MEETING-HOUSE. 


Even  the  old  editions  of  their  works,  with  their 
margins  and  old-fashioned  notes,  were  precious  to 
him.  It  was  easy  for  him  to  tell  a  real  Puritan  book, 
by  its  shape,  and  by  the  appearance  of  the  type.  Many 
of  the  books  were  quaintly  bound,  and  some  "  wandered 
about  in  sheepskins  and  goatskins."  But  all  was  fish 
that  came  to  his  net.  He  devoured  the  book  whatever 
might  be  its  appearance.  His  love  of  reading  was  a 
very  prominent  point  in  his  character. 


The  Essex  Lad  in  the  Essex   Village.  29 

The  old  meeting-house  was  a  memorable  place.  Mr. 
Spurgeon,  when  a  boy  made  a  drawing  of  it,  and  here 
it  is  on  the  opposite  page. 

The  pulpit  was  a.  very  quaint  structure ;  over  it 
hung  a  huge  sounding  board.  It  often  concerned  little 
Charlie  to  think  what  would  become  of  his  grand- 
father if  the  top  should  drop  down  during  service 
time. 

At  the  back  of  the  pulpit  there  was  a  peg  to  hold 
the  minister's  hat.  Just  below  the  pulpit  was  the 
big  square  pew,  called  the  table  pew  ;  it  was  paved 
with  gravestones,  and  altogether  it  looked  a  very 
imposing  place.  It  was  from  this  semi-sacred  region 
that  the  hymns  and  notices  were  announced.  There 
were  several  square  pews  in  the  chapel,  very  roomy, 
lined  with  green  baize  and  furnished  with  brass 
rods  and  curtains. 

The  aisles  were  paved  with  bricks,  and  sprinkled 
with  sand. 

On  one  side  of  the  pulpit  there  were  two  big  doors, 
which  would  allow  a  wheeled  vehicle  to  pass  through, 
and  they  were  often  opened  for  this  purpose.  The 
shafts  of  the  carriage  would  be  turned  up  out  of  the 
way,  while  the  sick  or  infirm  person  remained  com- 
fortably seated  in  it.  It  was  no  uncommon  thing 
to  see  the  long  carriage  whips  brought  by  the 
worshippers  standing  erect  in  the  corners  of  the 
pews.  Mr.  Spurgeon's  father  has  told  me,  that 
frequently  he  has  counted  twenty  -  six  different 
vehicles  packed  into  the  sheds  connected  with  the 
place  at  one  time,  belonging  to  friends  who  had 
come  in  from  a  distance  to  attend  the  service. 

Mr.  Spurgeon,  when  describing  this  chapel  of  his 


30  The  Essex  Lad. 

childhood,  says  : — "The  gallery  went  along  the  whole 
inside  front  of  the  meeting-house,  and  turned  round 
a  little  way  on  each  sidD.  It  was  to  me,  as  a  child, 
an  elevated,  obscure,  and  unknown  region.  There 
were  men  with  flutes  who  let  the  water  run  out  at  the 
ends  of  the  tubes  on  the  people  below,  and  the  clarionet 
man,  for  whom  I  had  more  esteem,  because  I  could 
make  some  sort  of  noise  when  I  blew  through  his 
instrument ;  but  the  fifes  (why  not  fives  ?)  always 
baffled  me.  The  bassoon  man  was  there,  and  the 
serpent,  and  the  double-bass,  and  a  lot  more  of  them. 
THEY  COULD  play.  There's  no  mistake  about  it.  At 
least,  it  was  almost  as  certain  as  that  other  undeniable 
fact,  that  our  singers  could  sing.  Well,  it  was  hearty 
singing  ;  and  say  what  you  like,  it's  the  heart  in  the 
singing  which  is  the  life  of  the  business.  Besides 
those  who  could  sing,  we  had  about  twice  as  many 
who  could  neither  play  nor  sing ;  but  excelled  in 
sharply  criticizing  what  was  done  by  others. 

"  I  cannot  forget  the  big  clock  which  had  a  face 
outside  the  chapel  as  well  as  one  inside.  When  his 
long  body  had  been  newly  grained,  he  seemed  a  very 
suitable  piece  of  furniture  for  a  nice,  clean,  old- 
fashioned  Puritan  meeting-house. 

"  Outside  the  Meeting,  near  that  long  side,  which  was 
really  the  front,  there  stood  a  horsing-block.  Ladies 
went  up  the  steps,  and  found  themselves  on  a  plat- 
form of  the  same  height  as  their  horse's  back.  It  was 
a  commendable  invention  :  how  often  have  I  wished 
for  something  of  the  sort  when  I  have  had  to  climb 
my  Rosinante  ! 

"  To  me  this  horsing-block  was  dear  for  quite 
another  reason      The  grand  old  lime  trees  shed  their 


The  Essex  Lad  in  the  Essex   Village.  31 

leaves  in  profusion,  and  when  these  were  swept  up, 
the  old  chapel-keeper  would  ram  a  large  quantity 
of  them  under  the  horsing-block.  When  I  had  pulled 
out  about  as  many  as  fitted  my  size,  I  could  creep 
in  ;  and  there  lie  hidden  beyond  fear  of  discovery. 

"My  friend,  Mr.  Manton  Smith,  has  written  a 
book  called  '  Stray  Leaves  '  ;  and  another  which  he 
has  entitled  <  More  Stray  Leaves  '  ;  I  entered  into 
his  work  before  he  was  born.  So  good  was  the 
hiding,  that  it  remained  a  marvel  where  'the  child' 
could  be.  The  child  would  get  alone  ;  but  where 
he  went  to,  his  guardian  angels  knew,  but  none  on 
earth  could  tell. 

"  Only  a  little  while  ago,  my  dear  old  aunt  Ann 
said,  '  But,  Charles,  where  did  you  get  to  when  you 
were  such  a  little  child?  We  used  to  look  every- 
where for  you,  but  we  never  found  you  till  you  came 
walking  in  all  by  yourself.' 

"  The  horsing-block  was  the  usual  haunt  when  there 
were  leaves,  and  an  old  tomb  would  serve  at  other 
times.  No,  I  did  not  get  into  the  grave  ;  but  it  had  a 
sort  of  altar  tomb  above  it,  and  one  of  the  side  stones 
would  move  easily,  so  that  I  could  get  inside,  and 
then  by  setting  the  slab  of  stone  back  again  I  was 
enclosed  in  a  sort  of  large  box  where  nobody  would 
dream  of  looking  for  me. 

"  I  went  to  the  aforesaid  tomb  to  show  my  aunt 
my  hiding-place  ;  but  the  raised  altar  was  gone,  and 
the  top  of  it,  with  the  name  of  the  deceased  thereon, 
was  laid  flat  on  the  ground.  Some  of  the  side  stones, 
which  formerly  held  up  the  memorial,  were  used  to 
make  door-steps  when  the  buildings  were  put  into 
their  present  state  of  repair,  and   the  top  stone  was 


32  TJie  Essex  Lad. 

made  to  occupy  the  same  space,  only  it  lay  flat 
upon  the  ground  instead  ol  being  raised  some  two 
feet  above  it.  Still,  I  remembered  well  the  place, 
and  what  the  tomb  had  formerly  been. 

"  How  often  have  I  listened  to  the  good  people 
calling  me  by  my  name !  I  heard  their  feet  close  to 
my  den,  but  I  was  wicked  enough  still  to  be  '  lost,' 
though  the  time  for  meals  was  gone.  Dreaming  of 
days  to  come  befell  me  every  now  and  then  as  a  child, 
and  to  be  quite  alone  was  my  boyish  heaven. 

"  The  prayer-meetings  during  the  week  were  always 
kept  up  ;  but  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year  grand- 
father and  a  few  old  women  were  all  that  could  be 
relied  upon. 

"  It  occurred  to  me,  in  riper  years,  to  ask  my 
venerated  relative  how  the  singing  was  maintained. 

"  '  Why,  grandfather,'  said  I,  '  we  always  sang,  and 
yet  you  don't  know  any  tunes,  and  certainly  the  old 
ladies  didn't.' 

"'Why,  child,''  said  he,  'there's  one  Common  metre 
tune  which  is  all,'  '  Hum  Ha,  Hum  lia,'  '<.. nd  I  could 
manage  that  very  well.' 

" '  But  how  if  it  happened  to  be  a  Long  or  Short 
metre  hymn  ? ' 

"'Why,  then  I  either  put  in  more  Hum  Ha's,  or 
else  I  left  some  out  ;  but  we  managed  to  praise 
the  Lord.'" 

The  godly  wife  of  the  minister  of  Stambourne,  was 
everything  that  a  minister's  wife  should  be ;  she 
studied  her  husband's  comfcrt  as  well  as  the  general 
good  of  the  pec  pie  in  the  village,  and  did  much 
before  she  died  towards  the  training  of  her  dear  little 
grandson. 


The  Essex  Lad  in  the  Essex    Village.  33 

It  was  always  her  delight  to  give  him  pleasure,  and 
whenever  her  husband  had  arranged  to  visit  the 
Squire's  house  to  take  tea  with  him,  which  was  not 
an  unfrequent  occurrence,  she  generally  managed 
somehow  for  her  grandson  to  accompany  him.  Their 
usual  custom  at  such  tea-parties  was  to  indulge  in 
sugared  bread  and  butter.  The  grown-up  men  con- 
sidered this  a  luxury,  and  although  the  sugar  was 
very  brown  she  knew  Charlie  would  be  delighted, 
for  this  was  quite  in  accordance  with  his  taste. 
I  daresay  some  of  you  young  people  would  not  have 
objected  to  join  the  party  had  you  been  alive  at 
the  time. 

There  were  three  special  points  in  the  life  of  Mrs 
James  Spurgeon,  of  Stambourne,  that  early  fixed 
themselves  in  the  memory  of  her  grandson  Charlie, 
and  these  were  her  kindness,  her  love,  and  her  piety. 
He  made  up  his  mind  to  imitate  her  in  all  three,  and 
these  characteristics  became  more  intensified  in  his 
life  as  he  grew  into  years.  May  every  grandmother 
who  may  read  this  life  be  known  and  remembered  by 
the  same  good  qualities  ! 

At  length  one  night  the  aged  wife  passed  to  her 
reward.  She  died  sitting  up  in  bed  with  her  finger 
on  a  verse  in  the  book  of  Job  :  "  The  hand  of  God 
hath  touched  me,"  and  from  this  text  was  preached  her 
funeral  sermon.     It  was  a  fit  close  to  a  lovely  life. 

One  of  the  privileges  of  the  little  grandson  while 
visiting  at  the  Stambourne  Manse  was  to  be  allowed 
to  read  the  Scriptures  at  family  prayers. 

Once  upon  a  time  when  reading  the  passage  in  the 
Book  of  Revelation  which  mentions  the  bottomless 
pit,  he  paused  and  said, 


34  The  Essex  Lad. 

"  '  Grandpa,  what  can  this  mean  ? ' 

u  The  answer  was  kind  but  unsatisfactory :  '  Pooh, 
pooh,  child,  go  on  ! ' 

"  The  child  intended,  however  fro  have  an  explana- 
tion, and  therefore  selected  the  same  chapter  morning 
after  morning,  Sunday  included,  and  always  halted 
at  the  same  verse  to  repeat  the  enquiry. 

"  At  length  the  venerable  patriarch  capitulated  at 
discretion  by  saying,  '  Well,  dear,  what  is  it  th?t 
puzzles  you  ? ' 

"  Now,  the  child  had  often  seen  baskets  with  very 
frail  bottoms,  which  in  course  of  wear  became  bottom- 
less, and  allowed  the  fruit  placed  therein  to  fall  upon 
the  ground.  Here,  then,  was  the  puzzle  with  which 
he  rather  startled  the  propriety  of  family  worship. 

" '  Grandfather,'  he  said,  '  If  the  pit  has  no  bottom, 
where  will  all  the  people  fall  to  who  drop  out  at  its 
lower  end  ? ' 

"  No  sufficient  answer  being  given,  the  difficulty  had 
to  be  laid  aside  for  explanation  at  a  more  convenient 
season. 

11  Questions  of  the  like  simple  and  natural  character 
would  frequently  break  up  into  paragraphs  the  family 
Bible  reading,  and  had  there  not  been  a  world  of 
love  and  license  allowed  to  the  inquisitive  reader,  he 
would  soon  have  been  deposed  from  his  office.  As 
it  was,"  says  Mr.  Spurgeon  in  relating  the  incident, 
"  the  Scriptures  were  not  very  badly  rendered,  and 
were  probably  quite  as  interesting  as  if  they  had  not 
been  interspersed  with  original  and  curious  enquiries." 


CHAPTER    V. 

%   lUnmrkMc   frqjhcriJ. 

HILE  spending  a  summer  vacation  at  his 
grandfather's,  when  he  was  ten  years  old, 
an  incident  occurred  which  had  a  material 
influence  on  the  boy  at  the  time,  and 
perhaps  helped  to  mould  his  future  life.  It  occurred 
during  a  visit  which  the  Rev.  Richard  Knill  paid  to  the 
Essex  village.  Here  is  the  story  in  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
own  words,  as  given  in  Memories  of  S tambour ne : — 

"  Mr.  Knill  took  the  county  of  Essex  in  the  year 
1844,  and  traversed  the  region  from  town  to  town,  as 
a  deputation  for  the  London  Missionary  Society. 
In  the  course  of  that  journey  he  spent  a  little  time 
at  Stambourne  Parsonage.  In  his  heart  burned  the 
true  missionary  spirit,  for  he  sought  the  souls  of 
young  and  old,  whenever  they  came  in  his  way.  He 
was  a  great  soul-winner,  and  he  soon  spied  out  the 
boy. 

"  He  said  to  me,  *  Where  do  you  sleep  ?  for  I  want 
to  call  you  up  in  the  morning.' 

"  I  showed  him  my  little  room,  and  he  took  good 
note  of  it.  At  six  o'clock  he  called  me  up.  There 
stood  in  my  grandfather's  garden  two  arbours  made 
of  yew  trees,  cut  into  sugar-loaf  fashion.  We  went 
into  the  right-hand  arbour,  and  there,  in  the  sweetest 


36 


The  Essex  Lad. 


way,  he  told  me  of  the  love  of  Jesus,  and  of  the 
blessedness  of  trusting  in  Him  and  loving  Him  in 
our  childhood.  With  many  a  story  he  preached  Christ 
to  me,  and  told  me  how  good  God  had  been  to  him, 
and  then  he  prayed  that  I  might  know  the  Lord  and 
serve  Him.     He  knelt  down  in  the  arbour,  and  prayed 


MR.    KNILL    AND   THE   BOY    SPURGEON    IN    THE   YEW    ARBOUR. 


for  me  with  his  arms  about  my  neck.  He  did  not 
seem  content  unless  I  kept  with  him  in  the  interval 
between  the  services  and  he  heard  my  childish  talk 
with  patient  love. 

"  On  Monday  morning  he  did  as  on  the  Sabbath, 
and   again   on  Tuesday.     Three  times  he   taught  me 


A  Remarkable  Prophecy.  37 

and  prayed  with  me,  and  before  he  had  to  leave,  my 
grandfather  had  come  back  from  the  place  where  he 
had  gone  to  preach,  and  all  the  family  were  gathered 
to  morning  prayer.  Then,  in  the  presence  of  them 
all,  Mr.  Knill  took  me  on  his  knee,  and  said  : — 

" '  This  child  will  one  day  preach  the  gospel,  and 
he  will  preach  it  to  great  multitudes.  I  am  persuaded 
that  he  will  preach  in  the  chapel  of  Rowland  Hill, 
where  (I  think  he  said)  I  am  now  the  minister.' 

"  He  spoke  very  solemnly,  and  called  upon  all 
present  to  witness  what  he  said.  Then  he  gave  me 
sixpence  as  a  reward  if  I  would  learn  the  hymn 

'  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way, 
His  wonders  to  perform.' 

I  was  made  to  promise  that  when  I  preached  in 
Rowland  Hill's  Chapel  that  hymn  should  be  sung. 
Think  of  that  as  a  promise  from  a  child  ! 

"  Would  it  ever  be  other  than  an  idle  dream  ? 

"  Years  flew  by. 

"  After  I  had  begun  for  some  little  time  to  preach 
in  London,  Dr.  Alexander  Fletcher  was  engaged  to 
deliver  the  annual  sermon  to  children  in  Surrey 
Chapel ;  but  as  he  was  taken  ill,  I  was  asked  in  a 
hurry  to  preach  to  the  children  in  his  stead. 

" '  Yes,'  I  replied,  '  I  will,  if  you  will  allow  the 
children  to  sing,  "  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way." 
I  have  made  a  promise  long  ago  that  so  that  should 
be  sung.' 

"  And  so  it  was  :  I  preached  in  Rowland  Hill's 
Chapel,  and  the  hymn  was  sung.  My  emotions  on 
that  occasion  I  cannot  describe,  for  the  word  of  the 
Lord's  servant  was  fulfilled. 


38  The  Essex  Lad. 

"  Still  I  fancy  that  Surrey  was  not  the  chapel  which 
Mr.  Knill  intended. 

"  How  was  I  to  go  to  the  country  chapel  ? 

"  All  unsought  by  me,  the  minister  at  Wotton- 
under-Edge,  which  was  Mr.  Hill's  summer  residence, 
invited  me  to  preach  there.  I  went  on  the  condition 
that  the  congregation  should  sing,  '  God  moves  in  a 
mysterious  way  ' — which  was  also  done.  To  me  it 
was  a  very  wonderful  thing,  and  I  no  more  under- 
stood at  that  time  how  it  came  to  pass  than  I 
understand  to-day  why  the  Lord  should  be  so 
gracious  to  me." 

This  is  a  very  remarkable  incident.  Of  course,  we 
all  cannot  expect  to  have  our  future  course  in  life  told 
so  plainly.  God  hides  from  us  what  is  going  to 
happen,  but  He  has  prepared  a  plan  for  all  our  lives ; 
the  Bible  says  that  "the  steps  of  a  good  man  are 
ordered  of  the  Lord."  So,  though  we  may  not  know 
the  future,  we  may  be  guided  in  it,  if  only  we  will 
trust  the  Lord  Jesus,  whom  Mr.  Spurgeon  trusted, 
and  whose  truth  he  preached  for  so  many  years. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

omc    and    School 


in  T  Colchester,  there  was  now  quite  a  little 
group  of  children  to  cheer  the  father  and 
mother,  and  help  to  make  the  home  bright. 
Through  the  kindness  of  two  of  Mr. 
Spurgeon's  sisters,  I  have  been  privileged  to  get  an 
extra  peep  into  the  family  circle,  and  to  glean  some- 
thing of  the  spirit  of  their  childhood  days. 

Charles  H.  Spurgeon  was  admitted  by  all  his 
friends  to  be  a  little  king  in  the  home,  his  straight- 
forwardness as  a  boy  was  very  marked,  and  his 
brother  and  sisters  trusted  him  implicitly.  He  seemed 
born  to  organize.  This  was  seen  in  the  way  he  neatly 
covered  the  books  of  the  family,  and  numbered  them, 
appointing  one  of  the  sisters  librarian.  A  little  garden 
having  been  allotted  to  each  of  the  children  by  their 
father,  brother  Charlie  was  looked  upon  as  the  in- 
spector and  general  overseer,  and  reported  to  his 
father  which  plot  he  considered  to  be  the  best  kept, 
and  most  worthy  of  reward. 

One  of  their  delights  as  children,  was  to  sit  round 
the  fireside  at  night,  and  repeat  in  their  turn,  in  alpha- 
betical order,  a  verse  of  a  hymn.  Brother  Charlie 
could  with  ease,  commence  with  A  and  go  through 
the  alphabet,  but  his  little  sister  was  always  pleased 
when  they  arrived   at  the  letter  N.     She  knew  that 


40  The  Essex  Lad. 

•Charlie's  favourite  verse  began  with  that  letter,  and 
she  would  always  ask  that  he  should  say  it,  even  if  it 
did  not  come  quite  in  his  turn.  She  did  this  because 
in  reciting  the  third  line,  he  always  lifted  up  his 
finger  at  the  word  point,  and  this  pleased  them  al1 
greatly.     The  verse  ran  as  follows  : — 

"  Now  will  I  tell  to  sinners  round, 
What  a  dear  Saviour  I  have  found  ; 
r  11  point  to  Thy  redeeming  blood, 
And  say,  Behold  the  way  to  God." 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  very  early  he  shadowed 
forth  his  future  career.  His  life-work  was  still  to 
point  to  the  Lamb  of  God  which  taketh  away  the 
sin  of  the  world. 

Twice  during  these  early  days  he  wrote  a  little 
book,  containing  an  original  poem  and  an  article  on 
"  PASSING  Events."  He  also  compiled  another  book, 
which  he  called  "  SCRAPS  OF  MISSIONARY  NEWS." 
This  was  in  fact  quite  a  miniature  magazine.  He 
frequently  gave  his  brother  and  sisters  little  lectures 
on  Bunyan's  "  Pilgrim's  Progress,''  and  "  Holy  War," 
and  delivered  them  with  such  gusto  that  the  children 
listened  with  eager  delight. 

His  conduct,  as  a  child,  in  the  sanctuary,  was  the 
subject  of  general  remark,  and  even  before  his  con- 
version, his  reverence  for  good  things,  and  his  love  for 
good  men  was  very  great. 

After  a  visit  from  Mr.  Williams  the  missionary,  who 
stayed  a  short  time  at  his  father's  house,  and  who 
was  brutally  killed  afterwards  in  the  South  Seas,  he 
remarked  to  his  sister,  "  I  wish  I  had  half  his  love 
for  God  and  the  heathen."  When  he  heard  of  his 
death  at  Errcmanga,  he  said,  "  I  know,  dear  sister,  the 


Ho  vie  and  School.  41 

gate  of  Heaven  was  opened  very  wide  for  him  ;  Mr. 
Williams  will  be  in  Heaven  a  shining  one  for  ever,  for 
he  has  turned  many  to  righteousness." 

His  nature  was  so  unselfish,  that  he  would  give  all 
he  had  to  others,  scarcely  thinking  of  himself,  and  he 
never  lost  the  generous  spirit  of  those  early  days. 

The  love  of  reading  which  he  had,  and  to  which 
we  have  already  referred,  sometimes  caused  him  to 
forget  other  little  duties,  which  he  should  have  remem- 
bered, but  his  regret  afterwards  was  very  great.  He 
had  a  wonderful  desire  for  solid  and  instructive  books, 
but  read  he  must  ;  indeed,  it  is  on  record,  that  later 
on  in  life,  he  read  all  the  books  in  the  Maidstone 
library. 

His  father  has  told  me  that  he  never  saw  in  his 
life  such  a  boy  for  books.  "  In  fact,"  said  he,  "  Charlie 
did  nothing  else  all  his  life,  but  busy  himself  with 
books  ;  he  never  amused  himself  like  other  boys. 
James  was  full  of  fun  and  frolic,  keeping  rabbits, 
chickens,  guinea  pigs,  flying  kites,  digging  in  the 
garden,  sawing  wood,  hammering  nails,  making  wind- 
mills, and  cutting  out  boats  ;  but  Charlie  was  always 
buried  in  books." 

His  brother  bears  the  same  testimony.  He  says, 
"Whilst  I  was  busy  here  and  there,  interfering  with 
anything  and  everything  that  a  boy  could  touch,  he 
kept  to  books,  and  you  could  not  get  him  away  from 
study.  But  although  he  had  nothing  to  do  with  other 
things,  he  could  have  told  you  all  about  them,  because 
he  used  to  read  about  everything,  and  read  with  a 
memory  as  tenacious  as  a  vice  and  capacious  as  a 
barn.  I  can  recall  his  studying,  and  how  he  used  to 
be  delighted  to  give  me  the*  benefit  of  what  he  had 


42  The  Essex  Lad. 

been  reading.  I  acquired  a  good  deal  of  second-hand 
knowledge,  and  I  think  it  did  us  both  good  that  he 
should  learn  and  then  impart.  He  began  it  very 
early.  He  certainly  began  to  be  a  tutor  as  far  back 
as  I  can  remember.  He  made  such  progress  in  his 
studies  that  I  am  quite  sure  that  there  were  few  young 
men  anywhere  of  his  age,  at  his  time,  that  were  his 
equals,  and  I  think  I  do  not  know  any  that  were  his 
superiors." 

On  one  occasion  he  had  a  book  entitled  "  Spanish 
Bullfights,"  lent  him  by  an  unwise  friend,  and  was 
punished  by  his  parents  for  reading  it ;  he  told  one  of 
his  sisters  (speaking  like  some  old  man)  that  it  was  a 
good  thing  he  had  been  so  chastened. 

"  I  should  like  to  be  able  to  forget  even  the  half  I 
read  in  that  book,"  he  said,  "  but  I  cannot !  it  sticks  to 
me  like  glue.  Bad  books,"  he  added  "are  terrible  things." 

His  reverence  for  his  father  and  mother  was  very 
great,  and  his  godly  mother's  influence  was  one  of  the 
true  secrets  of  his  great  success  in  after  life.  His  love 
for  his  mother  made  him  something  like  that  boy 
who  said,  "  I  know  that  is  true,  for  mother  said  so  ; 
and  whatever  my  mother  says  is  true ;  even  if  it  isn't 
true.     It  is  true,  if  mother  says  it." 

Speaking  a  year  or  two  before  he  fell  asleep  in  Jesus, 
he  said,  "  When  I  was  a  boy,  I  never  doubted  what 
my  father  believed.  And  when  I  was  under  the 
influence  of  my  grandfather,  who  taught  me  the 
Word  of  God,  I  was  such  a  little  simpleton,  that  I 
never  set  up  my  judgment  against  his.  I  find  that 
very  small  boys  are  not  now  so  foolish  ;  I  wish  they 
were  wise  enough  to  be  as  foolish  as  I  was  ! 

"When  I   grew  up   I    never  suspected  a   doctrine 


home  and  School.  43 

because  my  father  believed  it.  No,  my  leaning  went 
the  other  way  ;  and  if  my  godly  lather  found  peace 
and  comfort  in  a  word,  I  thought  that  what  was  good 
for  him  was  good  for  his  son.  I  was  foolish  enough 
to  lean  on  the  words  of  my  elders  in  this  way,  and 
somehow,  though  others  often  think  that  such  a 
course  is  folly,  I  am  glad  that  it  was  so. 

"  I  thank  God,  too,  that  my  sons  were  as  foolish  as 
their  father;  and  that  what  their  father  believed  had 
an  attraction  for  them.  I  hope  that  they  judged  for 
themselves,  as  I  also  tried  to  do,  when  I  came  to  riper 
years  ;  but,  at  the  first,  it  was  the  words  of  my 
parents  that  led  me  to  Christ.  What  I  knew  of  the 
elements  of  the  gospel  I  received  largely,  without 
a  question,  from  them,  and  I  do  not  think  it  was  an 
ill  bequest." 

A  characteristic  incident  occurred  shortly  after  he 
once  came  home  from  Stambourne.  His  grandfather 
had  taught  him  always  to  do  what  he  thought  to  be 
right.  When  therefore  he  went  to  the  service  of  the 
sanctuary,  and  the  people  did  not  repeat  the  last  line 
of  the  hymn,  as  he  had  been  accustomed  to  hear  it 
rendered  at  Stambourne,  he  insisted  upon  doing  it 
himself,  to  the  disturbance  of  the  congregation.  He 
remarked  in  subsequent  years  that  it  would  have  been 
much  wiser,  and  better,  if  his  grandfather  had  told 
him,  as  a  little  boy,  to  do  what  his  parents  thought  to 
be  right.  But  thus  early  in  life  he  asserted  the  right 
to  private  judgment.  He  soon  found,  however,  that 
little  boys  are  not  always  the  best  judges  of  what  is 
right  and  what  is  wrong,  and  he  learned  to  look  for 
guidance  to  his  father  and  mother,  who  knew  so  much 
better  than  he  did  in  many  things. 


44  The  Essex  Lad. 

His  first  school  was,  you  remember,  conducted  by  a 
lady,  and  while  the  lad  was  at  this  school  an  incident 
occurred  which  proved  a  life-long  lesson  to  him  ;  it  is 
pithily  related  by  himself  in  JoJm  Ploughman's  Talk: 

"  When  I  was  a  very  small  boy,  in  pinafores,  and 
went  to  a  woman's  school,  it  so  happened  that  I 
wanted  a  stick  of  slate  pencil,  and  had  no  money  to 
buy  it  with.  I  was  afraid  of  being  scolded  for  losing 
my  pencils  so  often,  for  I  was  a  real  careless  little 
fellow,  and  so  did  not  dare  to  ask  at  home  ;  what 
then  was  I  to  do  ? 

"  There  was  a  little  shop  in  the  place,  where  nuts, 
and  tops,  and  cakes,  and  balls  were  sold  by  old  Mrs. 
Dearson,  and  sometimes  I  had  seen  boys  and  girls  get 
trusted  by  the  old  lady.  I  argued  with  myself  that 
Christmas  was  coming,  and  that  somebody  or  other 
would  be  sure  to  give  me  a  penny  then,  and  perhaps 
even  a  whole  silver  sixpence.  I  would  therefore 
go  into  debt  for  a  stick  of  slate  pencil,  and  be 
sure  to  pay  at  Christmas.  I  did  not  feel  easy  about 
it,  but  still  I  screwed  my  courage  up  and  went  into 
the  shop. 

"  One  farthing  was  the  amount,  and  as  I  had  never 
owed  anything  before,  and  my  credit  was  good,  the 
pencil  was  handed  over  by  the  kind  dame,  and  / 
was  in  debt. 

"  It  did  not  please  me  much,  and  I  felt  as  if  I  had 
done  wrong,  but  I  little  knew  how  soon  I  should 
smart  for  it.  How  my  father  came  to  hear  of  this 
little  stroke  of  business  I  never  knew,  but  some  little 
bird  or  other  whistled  it  to  him,  and  he  was  very 
soon  down  upon  me  in  right  earnest.  God  bless  him 
for,  it ;    he    was  a  sensible  man,   and    none   of   your 


Home  and  School.  45 

children  spoilers  ;  he  did  not  intend  to  bring  up  his 
children  to  speculate,  and  play  at  what  big  rogues 
call  financing,  and  therefore  he  knocked  my  getting 
into  debt  on  the  head  at  once,  and  no  mistake. 

"  He  gave  me  a  very  powerful  lecture  upon  getting 
into  debt,  and  how  like  it  was  to  stealing,  and  upon 
the  way  in  which  people  were  ruined  by  it ;  and 
how  a  boy  who  would  owe  a  farthing,  might  one 
day  owe  a  hundred  pounds,  and  get  into  prison,  and 
bring  his  family  into  disgrace.  It  was  a  lecture, 
indeed  ;  I  think  I  can  hear  it  now,  and  can  feel  my 
ears  tingling  at  the  recollection  of  it. 

"  Then  I  was  marched  off  to  the  shop  like  a  deserter 
marched  into  barracks,  crying  bitterly  all  down  the 
street,  and  feeling  dreadfully  ashamed,  because  I 
thought  everybody  knew  I  was  in  debt.  The  farthing 
was  paid  amid  many  solemn  warnings,  and  the  poor 
debtor  was  set  free,  like  a  bird   let  out  of  a   cage. 

"  How  sweet  it  felt  to  be  out  of  debt !  How  did  my 
little  heart  vow  and  declare  that  nothing  should  ever 
tempt  me  into  debt  again  !  It  was  a  fine  lesson,  and 
I  have  never  forgotten  it.  If  all  boys  were  inoculated 
with  the  same  doctrine  when  they  were  young,  it 
would  be  as  good  as  a  fortune  to  them,  and  save 
them  waggon-loads  of  trouble  in  after  life.  God 
bless  my  father,  say  I,  and  send  a  breed  of  such 
fathers  into  old  England  to  save  her  from  being  eaten 
up  with  villainy." 

So  deeply  was  the  horror  of  debt  implanted  in  him 
by  this  incident,  that  during  his  after  life  he  shunned 
it  as  he  would  have  avoided  the  plague.  Even  when 
he  built  the  Tabernacle  he  would  not  go  into  debt, 
and  it  was  not  opened   until  every  penny  was  paid. 


46  The  Essex  Lad. 

I  hope  all  those  who  read  these  pages  may  take  this  to 
heart,  and  "owe  no  man  anything,  but  love  to  one 
another." 

After  a  short  time  under  Mrs.  Cook's  tuition  it  was 
deemed  advisable  to  remove  Charlie  to  a  school  which 
was  kept  by  Mr.  Henry  Lewis,  of  Stockwell  House, 
Colchester  ;  here  he  made  rapid  progress,  and  soon 
stood  at  the  top  of  the  class.  For  some  time  he 
retained  this  place,  but  there  came  a  time  when  he 
gradually  gravitated  downwards  till  he  was  quite  at 
the  bottom.. 

This  was  a  matter  of  great  astonishment  to  his 
teacher  who  knew  his  abilities,  especially  as  he  did 
not  seem  to  make  any  great  effort  to  regain  the 
position  he  had  lost.  He  seemed,  in  fact,  quite 
content  to  be  considered  the  dunce  of  the  class, 
and  to  remain  at  the  foot  of  it. 

One  day  it  dawned  on  his  teacher  that  the  top  ot 
the  class  was  next  to  a  draughty  door,  and  the  bottom 
of  the  class  close  to  a  warm  stove  ;  and  thinking 
perhaps  this  had  something  to  do  with  young 
Spurgeon's  strange  loss  of  ambition,  he  altered  the 
order  of  the  class,  making  the  bottom  the  top,  and  the 
top  the  bottom. 

So  Master  Charlie,  being  last  of  all,  was  compelled 
to  stand  next  to  the  draughty  door.  Not  for  long, 
however.  When  he  saw  that  now  merit  in  the  class 
meant  personal  comfort,  he  displayed  such  diligence 
that  he  soon  regained  his  position,  and  in  a  short 
time  he  was  found  standing  beside  the  warm  stove 
again  ;  and  in  that  place  of  worth  and  warmth  he 
kept  till  he  left  the  school. 

Some  people  have  imagined  that  Mr.  Spurgeon  was 


Home  and  School.  47 

a  man  of  meagre  education,  but  this  is  quite  a 
mistake.  Mr.  James  Spurgeon  bears  witness  that 
both  he  and  his  brother  received  the  best  Non- 
conformist education  it  was  possible  at  that  time  to 
get.      Their  father  pinched  himself  to  give  it  to  them. 

Mr.  Cheveley,  of  Harrogate,  who  was  a  schoolfellow 
of  theirs,  bears  witness  to  the  same  effect.  He 
says  : — "  Stockwell  House,  Colchester,  where  Charles 
Haddon  Spurgeon  was  being  educated  from  the  age  of 
eleven  to  fifteen,  was  a  thoroughly  good  middle-class 
classical  and  commercial  school.  Mr.  Henry  Lewis, 
the  principal,  was  a  man  whose  literary  attainments 
were  of  a  superior  order,  and  for  years  he  was  assisted 
by  a  very  scholarly  man  in  the  person  of  Mr.  Leeding." 

I  may  perhaps  be  allowed  to  interrupt  this  letter, 
and  say  here  that  Mr.  Spurgeon,  in  after  years,  took 
the  greatest  interest  in  his  former  assistant  master, 
whose  death  occurred  only  very  recently. 

"  Mr.  Leeding  was  the  classical  and  mathematical 
tutor;  his  teaching  was  very  thorough,  and  in  Charles 
Spurgeon  he  possessed  a  pupil  of  a  very  receptive  mind, 
especially  with  Latin  and  Euclid.  I  remember  well 
that  in  both  of  these  subjects  he  was  very  advanced, 
so  that  he  left  Stockwell  House  a  thoroughly  well- 
educated  youth  ;  in  fact,  quite  as  much  so  as  it  was 
possible  for  him  to  attain  outside  the  Universities." 

So  far  advanced  was  he  that  when  his  school- 
master was  commissioned  to  compile  the  tables  for  a 
certain  Life  Assurance  Society,  he  gave  the  work  to 
Charles  Spurgeon  to  do,  and  the  tables  of  that  Society, 
even  to  the  present  day,  are  the  handiwork  of  him 
who  afterwards  became  the  Pastor  of  the  Metropolitan 
Tabernacle. 


48 


The  Essex  Lad. 


A  few  years  ago,  one  who  now  stands  very  high  at 
the  English  Bar,  told  one  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  sisters, 
that  the  help  her  brother  Charles  gave  him  with  his 
Latin,  after  school  hours,  was  the  cause  of  his  present 
success  in  life.  But  her  brother,  as  far  as  she  knew, 
had  never  mentioned  to  anyone  the  assistance  he  had 
rendered  to  his  schoolmate. 

Early  in  the  year  1848  the  two  brothers  were  sent 
by  their  father  to  complete  their  studies  at  All  Saints 
Agricultural  College,  Maidstone,  which  was  conducted 
by  a  Mr.  Walker.  There  they  remained  until  Charlie 
was  appointed  as  a  junior  teacher  in  Mr.  Swindell's 
school  at  Newmarket.  According  to  his  father's 
diary  he  started  from  Colchester,  accompanied  by  his 
godly  mother,  on  the  17th  August,  1849,  being  then 
in  his  fifteenth  year.  When  he  thus  left  his  home,  for 
what  we  may  call  his  real  start  alone  in  life,  his  father 
wrote  in  his  diary,  beneath  the  date,  "  The  Lord  go 
with  him,  and  keep  him  and  bless  him."  Very 
abundantly  has  that  prayer  been  answered. 


MR.    SPURGRON  S    MOTHER. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

<2thc  ^iege  at  ^rtillcrt)  3mtc. 

?UT  now  we  turn  from  his  mental  education 
to  ask  about  the  state  of  this  young  man's 


heart.  We  have  already  seen  his  rever- 
ence for  good  things  and  his  longing  after 
the  best  life,  but  as  his  studies  advanced  his  soul  be- 
came unsettled,  until  he  seemed  for  a  time  to  lose 
faith  even  in  his  father's  religion.  We  shall  best 
understand  his  state  at  this  time  by  giving  an  account 
of  it  in  his  own  brilliant  words,  as  recorded  in  one 
of  his  sermons.  Speaking  of  a  free  thinker,  he 
remarks  : — 

"  I,  too,  have  been  like  him.  There  was  an  evil 
hour  in  which  I  dipped  the  anchor  of  my  faith  :  I  cut 
the  cable  of  my  belief:  I  no  longer  moored  myself 
hard  by  the  coast  of  Revelation  :  I  allowed  my  vessel 
to  drift  before  the  wind,  and  thus  started  on  the 
voyage  of  infidelity.  I  said  to  Reason,  '  Be  thou  my 
captain';  I  said  to  my  own  brain, '  Be  thou  my  rudder'; 
and  I  started  on  my  mad  voyage.  Thank  God  it  is 
all  over  now  ;  but  I  will  tell  you  its  brief  history ;  it 
was  one  hurried  sailing  over  the  tempestuous  ocean  of 
free  thought." 

From  doubting  some  things  he  c  ime  to  question 
everything,  even   his  own  existence.     But  at  length 


50  The  Essex  Lad. 

there  came  a  day  when  he  conquered  those  extremes 
to  which  Satan  often  drives  the  sinner  who  is  really 
repenting  of  his  sins. 

Mr.  Spurgeon's  father  was  at  this  time  an  Indepen- 
dent minister,  and  lived  at  Colchester,  preaching  every 
Sunday  at  Tollesbury,  a  small  village  within  driving 
distance  of  the  town.  It  was  while  C.  H.  Spurgeon 
was  home  from  Newmarket  for  the  Christmas  holidays 
that  he  experienced  the  great  spiritual  change  of  his 
life,  and  became  a  new  man  in  Christ  Jesus. 

Of  his  state  at  this  time,  he  gave  the  following 
account  in  his  two  thousandth  printed  sermon : — 

"  Years  ago,  when  I  was  a  youth,  the  burden  of  my 
sin  was  exceedingly  heavy  upon  me.  I  had  fallen 
into  no  gross  vices,  and  should  not  have  been  regarded 
by  any  one  as  being  specially  a  transgressor  ;  but  I 
regarded  myself  as  such,  and  I  had  good  reason  for 
so  doing.  My  conscience  was  sensitive  because  it  was 
enlightened  ;  and  I  judged  that,  having  had  a  godly 
father,  and  a  praying  mother,  and  having  been  trained 
in  the  ways  of  piety,  I  had  sinned  against  much  light, 
and  consequently  there  was  a  greater  degree  of  guilt 
in  my  sin  than  in  that  of  others  who  were  my  youthful 
associates,  but  had  not  enjoyed  my  advantages. 

"  I  could  not  enjoy  the  sports  of  youth,  for  I  felt  that 
I  had  done  violence  to  my  conscience.  I  would  seek 
my  chamber,  and  there  sit  alone,  read  my  Bible,  and 
pray  for  forgiveness  ;  but  peace  did  not  come  to  me. 
Books  such  as  Baxter's  '  Call  to  the  Unconverted,' 
and  Doddridge's  '  Rise  and  Progress,'  I  read  over  and 
over  again.  Early  in  the  morning  I  would  awake, 
and  read  the  most  earnest  religious  books  I  could  find, 
desiring  to  be  eased  of  my  burden  )f  sin.     I  was  not 


The  S  lege  at  A  rlillery  Lane.  5  1 

always  thus  dull,  but  at  times  my  misery  of  soul  was 
very  great.  The  words  of  the  weeping  prophet  and 
of  Job  were  such  as  suited  my  mournful  case.  I 
would  have  chosen  death  rather  than  life.  I  tried  to 
do  as  well  as  I  could,  and  to  behave  myself  aright  ; 
but  in  my  own  judgment  I  grew  worse  and  worse.  I 
felt  more  and  more  despondent.  I  attended  every 
place  of  worship  within  my  reach,  but  I  heard  nothing 
which  gave  me  lasting  comfort." 

It  had  been  his  custom,  when  at  home  with  other 
members  of  the  family,  usually  to  accompany  his 
father,  but  on  one  Sunday,  during  the  month  of 
January,  1 850,  it  was  so  stormy,  that  Mrs.  Spurgeon 
would  not  allow  Charles  to  go  so  far,  but  advised  him 
to  attend  some  place  of  worship  in  the  town.  His 
unrest  of  heart  had,  as  we  have  seen,  set  him  visiting 
all  the  places  round  about  to  see  if  he  could  find 
peace  somewhere.  On  this  Sunday  morning  he  found 
his  way  into  a  little  Primitive  Methodist  Chapel,  in 
Colchester,  which  he  had  never  entered  before,  and 
which  he  did  not  even  know  was  in  existence  till  that 
moment.  The  preacher  that  day  was  a  local  man, 
pale  as  death  and  as  thin  as  a  skeleton,  who  during 
the  week  worked  at  digging  and  planting  cabbages, 
and  on  Sundays  occasionally  occupied  the  pulpit  in 
the  little  sanctuary. 

On  account  of  the  snow  and  the  storm  there  were  but 
{qw  people  present  on  this  particular  morning  ;  indeed 
so  sparse  was  the  congregation  that  the  preacher 
debated  in  his  own  mind  whether  it  was  worth  while 
to  deliver  an  address  at  all,  and  even  said  "  I  don't 
think  I'll  preach  this  meriting."  Better  judgment 
however  prevailed,  and   he  was   led  by   God'*   Holy 


52  The  Essex  Lad. 

Spirit  to  direct  the  attention  of  tre  few  people  who 
were  there,  to  that  well-known  verse  in  Isaiah  xlv.  22, 
"  Look  unto  me,  and  be  ye  saved,  all  the  ends  of  the 
earth  :  for  I  am  God,  and  there  is  none  else." 

The  preacher,  fixing  his  eyes  upon  the  stranger 
under  the  gallery,  and  at  the  same  time  pointing  with 
his  finger  to  him,  said,  by  way  of  application  to  his 
text :  "  There  is  a  young  man  under  the  left  hand 
gallery,  who  is  very  miserable.  He  will  find  no  peace 
till  he  looks  to  Jesus.  Young  man,  you  seem  to  be 
in  trouble.  Look  to  Jesus,  and  you  will  get  rid  of  it. 
Look,  look,  look ! "  Again  he  cried  "  Look,  look, 
young  man,  Look." 

That  instant  his  youthful  hearer  saw  that  salvation 
was  not  of  himself,  and  the  look  of  faith  to  Christ's 
finished  work  brought  salvation  to  his  soul.  The 
burden  he  had  carried  for  weeks  and  months  fell 
from  him,  and  he  was  enabled  to  rejoice  in  Christ 
immediately.  Such  an  overflowing  joy  came  over 
him  that  he  felt  he  could  have  stood  up  there  and 
then,  and  cried  "Hallelujah!  Glory  be  to  God,  I  am 
delivered  from  the  burden  of  my  sin." 

Little  did  anyone  realize  what  a  work  for  God  and 
for  eternity  had  been  done  that  day.  Perhaps  the 
preacher  went  home  discouraged.  But  in  the  records 
on  high,  it  was  noted  that  a  chosen  vessel  to  bear 
grace  to  millions  had  that  morning  been  found  and 
claimed.  The  siege  in  Artillery  Lane  Chapel  had 
ended  in  a  victory. 

The  audience  during  that  service,  resembled  Philip's 
audience  in  the  desert  of  Gaza,  in  some  respects. 
There  were  few  in  number  ;  there  was,  at  least,  one 
attentive  hearer ;  there  was  one  anxious  enquirer  and 


The  Siege  at  Artillery  Lane.  53 

one  convert,  who  not  only  went  on  his  way  rejoicing, 
but  who  soon  confessed  the  Christ  he  had  received. 

In  the  evening  of  the  same  day,  the  young  believer 
attended  the  Baptist  Chapel,  at  Colchester,  in  com- 
pany with  his  mother,  and  heard  a  sermon  on  the 
text,  "  Accepted  in  the  Beloved."  This  was  made  a 
gieat  blessing  to  him,  leading  him  to  see  the  full  pro- 
vision made  for  his  every  need  in  Christ,  and  added 
to  his  experience  of  the  morning,  the  assurance  which 
comes  of  a  whole-hearted  trust  in  the  Son  of  God  as 
the  Saviour  of  the  soul. 

After  family  worship  that  evening,  Charles  was  re- 
minded by  his  father  that  it  was  bedtime  ;  but  he  did 
not  seem  inclined  to  retire. 

His  heart  was  full. 

A  second  time  his  father  said, 

"  Come,  come  boys,  it  is  time  to  go  to  bed." 

Instead,  however,  of  attempting  to  move,  his  son 
said, — 

"  Father,  I  should  like  to  speak  to  you  alone." 

When  the  others  had  gone,  he  unburdened  his 
heart  to  his  father,  and  they  talked  almost  till  mid- 
night. The  boy  spoke  of  the  morning  sermon,  and 
said,  that  the  way  of  salvation  was  made  so  clear 
to  him,  that  he  could  doubt  no  longer. 

"  I  seemed  then  to  understand,"  he  said,  "  that  Jesus 
bore  my  sins  in  His  own  body  on  the  tree,  and  to- 
night I  find  that  in  Christ  I  am  truly  accepted  before 
God.  This  is  a  blessed  Sabbath  for  me,  father,"  he 
added,  "  for  I  have  found  pardon,  peace  and  assurance 
in  Christ." 

Father  and  son  prayed  and  praised  God  together, 
and  only  those  parents  who  have  experienced  the  joy 


54  The  Essex  Lad. 

of  hearing  from  their  children's  lips  the  confession  of 
Christ  as  Lord  and  Saviour,  can  enter  into  the  joy  of 
that  father's  heart  that  night. 

On  October  nth,  1864,  Mr-  Spurgecn,  whose  fame 
had  in  the  interval  become  world-wide,  preached  a 
sermon  to  about  five  hundred  hearers,  in  the  chapel 
in  which  he  was  converted  at  Colchester,  on  the 
occasion  of  the  anniversary  of  that  place  of  worship. 
He  took  for  his  text  the  memorable  words  in  Isaiah, 
which  had  led  him  into  the  light,  and  said, — 

"  That  text  I  heard  preached  from  in  this  chapel, 
when  the  "Lord  converted  me." 

And  pointing  to  a  seat  on  the  left  hand,  under  the 
gallery,  he  said,  "  I  was  sitting  in  that  pew  when  I 
was  converted.'1  This  honest  confession  produced  a 
thrilling  effect  upon  the  congregation,  and  very  much 
endeared  the  successful  pastor  to  many  hearts. 

In  the  year  1880,  referring  to  his  conversion,  Mr. 
Spurgeon  said,  "  Many  days  have  passed  since  then, 
but  my  faith  has  held  me  up,  and  compelled  me  to 
tell  out  the  story  of  free  grace  and  dying  love.  I  can 
truly  say, — 

'•  E'er  since  by  faith  I  saw  the  stream, 
Thy  flowing  wounds  supply, 
Redeeming  love  has  been  my  theme, 
And  shall  be  till  I  die." 

This  was  the  verse  which  he  was  accustomed  to 
write  in  albums,  and  it  was  abundantly  true  of  him, 
all  his  life  long. 

Some  years  ago  my  dear  friends,  Rev.  V.  J. 
Charlesworth  and  Mr.  Chamberlain,  accompanied  a 
choir  of  the  Stockweli  Orphanage  boys  to  Colchester. 
In  the  evening  while  conversing  with   their  hostess, 


The  Siege  at  Artillery  Lane.  55 

she    informed    them    that    she    had    known    Charles 
Haddon  Spurgeon  when  he  was  quite  a  little  boy. 

"  I  have  a  curiosity  to  show  you,"  she  said,  "  and  I 
prize  it  very  much."' 


£  {jd^smJ^   <L*y  ifa 


A    FAC-SIMILE    PAGE    OF    "JUVENILE    MAGAZINE. 

When  it  was  produced,  it  proved  to  be  a  tiny 
manuscript  magazine-  which  he  had  kept  of  the 
*  Home   Juvenile    Society,"  and   it  was  written   in   a 


56  The  Essex  Lad. 

clear,  round  hand.  In  one  place  there  was  a  lamenta- 
tion, because  some  of  his  schoolmates  seemed  to  be 
falling  away  from  grace  ;  in  another  he  had  recorded 
his  sorrow  because  the  prayer  meetings  were  so  badly 
attended  ;  various  illustrations  and  extracts  completed 
the  sixteen  pages  which  it  contained.  A  facsimile 
penny  reproduction  of  this  interesting  memento  has 
been  issued  by  Mr.  Barton,  of  St.  George's  Road, 
Southwark,  and  by  his  courtesy  I  am  able  to  re- 
produce a  page  the  exact  size  of  the  original,  which 
will  show  Mr.  Spurgeon's  early  zeal  for  prayer.  Many 
friends  will  wish  to  possess  the  whole  of  this  bijou 
publication,  as  it  is  the  very  first  available  thing  which 
Mr.  Spurgeon  wrote.  It  was  written  when  he  was 
not  quite  twelve  years  of  age. 

My  friends  also  paid  a  visit  to  Artillery  Lane 
Chapel,  and  found  the  carpenters  busily  engaged 
taking  down  the  old  pulpit,  in  which  the  minister 
stood  on  that  memorable  Sunday  morning,  in  order 
to  replace  it  by  a  platform.  Mr.  Charlesworth,  with 
his  usual  sagacity,  soon  secured  the  old  pulpit,  as  a 
relic  of  the  past,  and  in  due  time,  it  was  transferred 
to  the  Stockwell  Orphanage,  and  placed  in  the  girls' 
play-hall.  Visitors  to  that  institution  may  still  see 
there  that  memorial  of  by-gone  days. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

%  gtw  Pan  at  f  ciumartict. 

'OT  long  after  the  great  change  of  heart  had 
taken  place,  the  young  Christian  was  de- 
prived of  the,  daily  counsel  of  his  father 
and  mother,  having  to  return  to  his  new 
sphere.  At  Newmarket  he  devoted  himself  closely  to 
his  studies  ;  he  gave  every  satisfaction,  and  soon  be- 
came a  great  favourite  in  the  school. 

Having  the  sunlight  of  God  in  his  soul  he  de- 
termined to  keep  the  light  bright  by  active  service  for 
his  Lord  and  Master.  He  therefore  set  about  helping 
others  in  every  possible  way.  The  Sunday-school 
became  his  great  delight,  and  he  gained  his  way  into 
the  homes  of  his  scholars  by  calling  to  teach  them 
writing  :  like  a  diligent  disciple  of  Christ  he  took  care 
that  the  very  copies  he  set  them  should  have  the 
gospel  in  them. 

The  principal  of  the  school  where  he  was  engaged 
at  Newmarket  was  a  Baptist,  and  there  is  little  doubt 
that  this  fact  had  some  share  in  turning-  the  thoughts 
of  the  junior  usher  to  the  subject  of  confessing  Christ 
in  the  way  of  that  denomination.  At  any  rate, 
in  a  few  months  young  Spurgeon,  having  well 
thought  out  the  matter  for  himself,  announced 
his  intention  of  being  publicly  baptized. 


53 


The  Essex  Lad. 


~ 


* 


Failing  to  find  a  Baptist  minister  in  Newmarket,  he 
arranged  with  Mr.  Cantlow,  the  pastor  of  a  small 
church  in  the  village  of  Isleham,  which  is  situated 
in  the  Fen  country,  to  immerse  him  in  the  river  Lark. 
On  the  1st  of  May,  in  1850,  he  wrote  to  his  father 
and  mother,  apprising  them  of  the  arrangements  made 
for  his  baptism.     His  mother  said  to  him  : — 


ISLEHAM    FERRY. 


"  Ah,  Charlie!  I  have  often  prayed  that  you  might 
be  saved,  but  never  that  you  should  become  a  Baptist." 

To  this  Charles  replied  :  "  God  has  answered  your 
prayers,  mother,  with  his  usual  bounty,  and  given  you 
more  than  you  asked." 

On  Friday,  May  3,  1850,  his  mother's  birthday,  he 
rose  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  spent  two  quiet 
hours  alone  with  God  in  prayer.    He  then  walked  eight 


A  New  Man  at  Newmarket.  59 

miles  to  Isleham  Ferry.  A  great  concourse  of  people 
had  already  assembled  to  witness  this  lad  of  sixteen 
go  through  the  solemn  ordinance ;  and  amid  deep 
solemnity,  but  with  much  happiness  of  heart,  the 
young  believer  went  down  into  the  water.  Having 
been  baptized  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  the  Son, 
and  the  Holy  Spirit  he  returned  to  Newmarket,  filled 
with  holy  joy,  determined  to  follow  Christ  with  all 
his  heart  until  the  end. 

At  once  he  decided  to  unite  himself  with  God's 
people,  and  with  this  intention  he  made  application 
to  join  a  church  at  Newmarket.  Referring  to  this 
time,  he  said,  in  a  recent  sermon  :  "  I  remember  the 
difficulty  that  I  had  when  I  was  converted,  and  wished 
to  join  the  Christian  church  in  the  place  where  I 
lived.  I  called  upon  the  minister  four  successive  days 
before  I  could  see  him  ;  each  time  there  was  some 
obstacle  in  the  way  of  an  interview  ;  and  as  I  could 
not  see  him  at  all,  I  wrote  and  told  him  that  I  would 
go  down  to  the  church-meeting,  and  propose  myself 
as  a  member. 

"  He  looked  upon  me  as  a  strange  character,  but  I 
meant  what  I  said  ;  for  I  felt  that  I  could  not  be 
happy  without  fellowship  with  the  people  ot  God.  I 
wanted  to  be  wherever  they  were  ;  and  if  anybody 
ridiculed  them,  I  wished  to  be  ridiculed  with  them  ; 
and  if  people  had  an  ugly  name  for  them,  I  wanted 
to  be  called  by  that  ugly  name  ;  for  I  felt  that  unless 
I  suffered  with  Christ  in  His  humiliation,  I  could  not 
expect  to  reign  with  Him  in  His  glory." 

He  did  not  carry  out  his  intention  of  proposing 
himself  for  membership  with  the  church.  The  indolent 
minister,  seeing  that  the  candidate  was  so  much  in 

3* 


6c  TJu  Essex  Lad. 

earnest,  arranged  to  meet  him,  and  he  was  introduced 
in  the  ordinary  way,  and  joined  himself  to  God's  people. 

So  the  new  life  continued  at  Newmarket.  But  we 
must  not  suppose  that  the  old  playfulness  was  lost. 
The  following  letter  to  his  sister,  the  original  of  which 
lies  before  me  as  I  write,  will  show  how  his  humour 
at  times  bubbled  up  irrepressibly  ;  and  at  the  same 
time  it  will  give  us  a  glimpse  of  that  unselfishness  of 
character  which  distinguished  him  even  to  the  end. 

The  letter  is  dated  Cambridge,  Thursday,  Dec, 
1850,  and  is  addressed  to  Miss  Caroline  Louisa 
Spurgeon.     He  writes — 

"Your  name  is  so  long  that  it  will  almost  reach 
across  the  paper.  We  have  one  young  gentleman  in 
our  school  whose  name  is  Edward  Ralph  William 
Baxter  Tweed  ;  the  boys  tease  him  about  his  long 
name  ;  but  he  is  a  very  good  boy,  and  that  makes  his 
name  a  good  one.  Everybody's  name  is  pretty,  if 
they  are  good  people.  The  Duke  of  Tuscany  has  just 
had  a  little  son  ;  the  little  fellow  was  taken  to  the 
Catholic  Cathedral,  *  *  *  *  *  * 
and  then  they  named  him — you  must  get  Eliza  to 
read  it — Giovanni  Nepomerceno  Maria  Annunziata 
Guiseppe  Giovanbaptista  Ferdinando  Baldassere  Luigi 
Gonzaga  Pietro  Allesandro  Zanobi  Antonino.  A 
pretty  name  to  go  to  bed  and  get  up  with  ;  it  will 
be  a  long  while  before  he  will  be  able  to  say  it  all 
the  way  through !  If  anyone  is  called  by  the  name 
of  Christian,  that  is  better  than  all  these  great  words : 
it  is  the  best  name  in  the  world,  except  the  name 
of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  My  best  love  to  you.  I 
hope  you  will  enjoy  yourself,  and  try  to  make  others 
happy,    too  ;    for    then    you    are    sure    to    be    happy 


A   New  Man  at  Newmarket.  61 

yourself ;  whereas,  if  you  only  look  out  to  please  your- 
self, you  will  make  others  uncomfortable,  and  will  not 
make  even  yourself  happy.  However,  of  course,  you 
know  that,  and  I  need  not  tell  you  of  it.  A  happy 
Christmas  to  you. 

Your  loving  brother,  Charles." 

On  my  last  visit  to  Mr.  Spurgeon's  home,  shortly 
before  his  terrible  illness,  he  said  at  the  tea-table,  that 
when  he  was  a  young  man,  at  Newmarket,  the  cook 
in  the  school  was  an  earnest,  Christian  woman,  with  a 
good  understanding  of  God's  truth,  but  with  a  very 
broad  accent,  and  a  very  quaint  way  of  expressing 
her  thoughts. 

They  both  attended  the  same  place  of  worship  ; 
and,  one  day,  there  had  been  in  the  sermon  neither 
gospel  for  the  sinner  nor  instruction  for  the  saint. 
When  he  got  home,  he  went  down  into  the  kitchen, 
and  said  to  her — 

"  How  did  you  get  on  this  morning,  cook  ?  I  did 
not  find  a  crumb  for  my  soul  in  the  whole  sermon." 

The  cook  replied,  "Well,  Spargon,  I  got  on  very 
well  indeed  ;  for,  all  the  time  the  man  was  preaching, 
I  was  like  an  old  hen  scratching  away  with  her  leg, 
turning  over  a  heap  of  rubbish ;  and  though  I  could  not 
find  any  food,  the  continual  scratching  kept  me  warm." 

In  the  evening,  being  again  disappointed  with  the 
preacher's  discourse,  the  young  tutor  went  to  his  friend 
in  the  kitchen  for  comfort  once  more. 

"Well,  Spargon,"  she  said,  this  time,  "I  got  on 
better  to-night  ;  for  to  all  the  preacher  said,  I  just  put 
a  not,  and  this  turned  all  his  talk  into  real  gospel." 

Amid  such  honest  surroundings,  the  new  life  of  the 
young  usher  rapidly  developed. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

Iiulcr  tin  shadoiu  of  flu  Vmittratfg. 

HE  young  tutor's  stay  at  Newmarket  was- 
not  a  very  prolonged  one.  But  he  made 
hay  while  the  sun  shone,  and  quickly 
became  a  power  for  God  in  the  place. 
He  was  soon  in  frequent  request  to  give  addresses 
to  the  Sunday-school.  These  addresses  were  so 
pithy  and  pointed,  that  the  parents  of  the  children 
gathered  in  large  numbers  to  hear  them  too,  until 
sometimes  he  had  more  grown-up  people  to  speak 
to,  than  the  minister  had  at  the  ordinary  services. 

Before  leaving  Newmarket,  he  gave  an  address  in 
public  on  Missions,  and  a  clergyman  of  the  Church  of 
England,  who  was  present,  was  so  delighted  with  it 
that  he  made  the  youthful  speaker  a  present  of  a 
sovereign,  to  encourage  him  to  employ  his  talents  in- 
such  good  service. 

When  Mr.  Leeding,  who  had  been  one  of  his  formei 
masters,  removed  from  Colchester  to  Cambridge,  in 
order  to  commence  a  private  college  for  young  gentle- 
men there,  he  urgently  invited  young  Spurgeon  to  join 
him,  and  chiefly  out  of  gratitude  for  the  instruction 
received  from  Mr.  Leeding  while  attending  his  school 
at  Colchester,  Mr.  Spurgeon  agreed  to  his  proposal ; 


Under  tJie  shadow  of  the   University.  63 

and  in  a  little  while  bade  adieu  to  his  labours  at 
Newmarket. 

Another  motive  led  to  the  change.  His  thirst  for 
knowledge  was  insatiable,  and  he  thought  that  he 
might  have  a  greater  opportunity  of  acquiring  it  at 
Cambridge  than  elsewhere.  In  addition  to  this  he 
intended  to  take  his  degree  at  the  University.  Mr. 
Leeding  assured  him  he  would  be  quite  able  to  do 
this  without  further  study,  but  discovering  that  his 
nonconformity  would  debar  him  from  it,  he  re- 
nounced the  idea.  Happily,  the  absurd  religious  test 
has  been  removed,  and  now  both  Oxford  and  Cam- 
bridge are  open  equally  to  Churchmen  and  Dissenters. 

Having  taken  up  his  abode  under  the  shadow  of 
the  University,  he  at  once  identified  himself  with  the 
church  worshipping  in  St.  Andrew's  Street,  which  for 
years  has  been  supported  by  many  of  the  leading 
men  of  the  town.  It  has  gained  and  retained  a  repu- 
tation, not  only  for  usefulness,  but  for  respectability 
and  decorum. 

A  few  weeks  after  Charles  Spurgeon  had  been 
received  into  church  fellowship  there,  he  joined  his 
brethren  at  the  Lord's  Table.  The  minister  spoke  on 
the  subject  of  brotherly  kindness,  and  the  young  com- 
municant quite  thought  he  meant  all  he  said.  So 
on  leaving  the  chapel  after  the  service,  he  briskly 
introduced  himself  to  the  gentleman  who  had  been 
sitting  in  front  of  him. 

"  How  do  you  do,  sir,"  he  said. 

The  gentleman  whom  he  addressed  seemed  some- 
what astonished  at  this  remark,  and  informed  the 
young  man  that  he  did  not  know  him. 

"  But  I  believe  you  are  my  brother,"  answered  he. 


64  The  Essex  Lad. 

"  I  do  not  understand  you." 

Not  the  least  abashed,  young  Spurgeon  informed 
him  that  he  was  a  stranger  in  the  town,  but  he  was  a 
member  of  the  same  church,  and  had  just  sat  at  the 
Lord's  Table  with  him. 

11  The  minister  said  we  were  all  brothers,"  he  urged, 
"  and  I  believed  him,  so  I  thought  I  would  come  and 
speak  to  you." 

For  two  or  three  minutes  the  gentleman  looked  at 
him  with  the  utmost  astonishment,  and  then  said, 
"There  now,  that's  what  I  call  genuine.  Come  to 
my  house ;  you  shall  be  my  brother  as  long  as  we  live." 

So  they  went  home  to  tea  together. 

A  sermon  which  Mr.  Spurgeon  preached  at  Amer- 
sham,  in  the  year  1857,  lies  before  me.  In  it  he 
records  the  incident,  and  says  concerning  the  gentle- 
man whom  he  thus  suddenly  accosted — "  To  this  day 
he  is  my  dearest  friend  ;  I  never  pass  through  that 
town  without  going  to  his  house,  and  no  name  gives 
more  music  to  me  among  the  sons  of  men  than  his." 

The  gentleman  is  still  living,  and  is  now  an  old 
man  ;  in  writing  to  me  this  week  he  says,  "  I  look  back 
with  much  gratitude  forty  years  to  the  time  when  the 
cheery  face  of  our  dearly  lamented  friend,  C.  H. 
Spurgeon  was  present  with  us  in  our  Sunday-school. 
He  was  so  original  in  all  that  he  undertook,  that  his 
work  keeps  quite  fresh  in  my  memory.  His  class  at 
first  was  composed  of  very  young  children,  so  that  he 
literally  fulfilled  the  charge,  '  Feed  my  Lambs,'  until 
he  was  called  away  to  higher  service.  His  appear- 
ance on  Sundays  brightened  up  most  of  the  faces  01 
the  scholars  in  our  school. 

"  It  was  some  time  before  all  the  teachers  could  be 


Under  the  shadow  of  the  University.  65 

persuaded  of  his  credentials  for  such  service  ;  some 
were  taken  a  little  aback  at  his  free,  open,  and  natural 
manner  in  the  work,  and  when  he  stood  up  in  the 
school  to  give  an  address,  the  facial  expression  of  a 
few  was  the  index  of  their  thoughts. 

"  His  constant  appearance  at  the  Monday  evening 
prayer  meetings  surprised  some  of  the  seniors,  and 
his  supplications  at  the  throne  of  grace  were  not  at 
all  like  their  own.  His  boldness  in  prayer,  at  such 
an  age,  caused  some  of  them  to  shake  their  heads,  and 
to  say  that  he  had  a  good  deal  yet  to  learn.  But  in 
the  midst  of  it  all,  there  was  no  trace  of  egotism  in 
him.  He  pursued  his  way  in  his  '  own  way,'  and  he 
worked  to  real  purpose. 

"A  section  of  the  Church  viewed  his  labours  with 
favour,  and  argued  a  great  future  for  him.  I  may  be 
permitted  to  say  I  was  one  of  them,  and  this  opinion 
was  confirmed  by  his  coming  to  my  home  and  almost 
becoming  one  of  us. 

"  One  Sunday  evening  he  was  asked  to  preach  to 
the  children  at  Cherryhinton,  and  on  this  occasion  I 
accompanied  him.  He  commenced  his  address  by 
saying : 

"'Whilst  I  sat  with  my  friend  at  tea,  I  noticed  a 
bright  little  boy  who  was  standing  before  the  window 
which  looked  into  the  garden  ;  he  was  rapidly  passing 
his  hands  up  and  down  the  panes  of  glass,  as  if  he 
wanted  to  catch  something.  My  curiosity  led  me  to 
go  up  to  him,  when  I  found  he  was  busily  engaged  in 
trying  to  catch  a  large  fly.  But  he  was  unsuccessful 
in  the  attempt. 

" '  Now,  boys  and  girls,  I  should  like  to  ask  you 
why  this  little  fellow  was  unable  to  do  this?' 


66  The  Essex  Lad. 

'■  A.  few  answers  from  the  children  were  given  to  his 
query,  but  none  of  them  solved  the  mystery. 

"'  Well,  children/  said  he,  '  I  will  tell  you  why.  It 
was  because  the  fly  was  on  tlic  other  side  of  the 
zvindow.' 

"  From  this  incident  the  young  preacher,  who  had 
only  just  turned  sixteen,  proceeded  most  graphically 
to  describe  the  hindrances  which  stood  in  their  way 
of  obtaining  that  which  they  were  all  so  desirous  of 
having — happiness  here  and  joy  hereafter;  and  showed 
that  the  reason  of  their  disappointment  was  that  they 
sought  for  the  blessing  on  the  wrong  side  of  things." 

Many  years  after  this  event,  my  friend  visited 
Mr.  Spurgeon  at  Clapham,  on  a  Saturday  even- 
ing, and  the  conversation  turned  upon  these  early 
days.  Mr.  Watts  referred  to  the  incident  of  the  fly, 
and  Mr.  Spurgeon  smiled  when  he  heard  of  it,  but 
said  nothing.  The  next  day,  however,  to  his  surprise, 
Mr.  Spurgeon  used  this  same  incident  in  the  Taber- 
nacle to  illustrate  his  point,  as  he  urged  his  hearers  to 
search  after  happiness  where  alone  it  may  be  obtained  ; 
and  he  enforced  the  lesson  with  much  power. 

The  same  correspondent  informs  me  that  on 
another  occasion  he  heard  Mr.  Spurgeon  address  his 
own  Sunday-school  in  the  following  manner. 

"  '  I  was  walking  in  the  streets  yesterday,'  he  said, 
'and  I  met  a  fine  military  man,  looking  very  smart  in 
his  regimentals.  He  had  a  sword  dangling  at  his 
side,  and  with  him  were  two  young  men,  from  whose 
caps  long  streamers  of  bright-coloured  ribbons  were 
floating.  What  do  you  think  was  the  meaning  01 
this  ? ' " 

*'  Many  guesses  and  replies  followed  from  the  children, 


Under  tht  shadow  of  the   University.  <jj 

but  none  were  exactly  to  the   speaker's   mind.     He 
therefore  answered  his  own  question. 

"  '  This  officer,'  he  said,  '  was  in  the  Queen's  service, 
and  was  what  is  called  a  recruiting  sergeant.  It  was 
his  business  to  speak  of  the  glory  of  the  Queen's  ser- 
vice, and  induce  others  to  join  the  army.  He  had 
invited  these  young  men  to  enlist  as  soldiers,  and  the 
long  gay  ribbons  showed  everybody  that  they  had 
accepted  this  offer.' 

" '  My  dear  children,'  he  continued,  '  I  am  seeking 
with  all  my  heart  to  persuade  you  to  enlist  in  the 
service  of  King  Jesus.  The  warfare  is  very  different 
to  that  of  the  young  men  I  have  been  speaking  about. 
They  are  to  fight  for  a  glory  which  fades  away,  but 
we  shall  obtain  an  eternal  reward.  We  shall  never 
be  pensioned  off  on  half-pay,  but  shall  dwell  eternally 
with  Christ,  our  Captain,  in  one  of  His  mansions  in 
Heaven.     Will  you  not,  therefore,  now  enlist  ? '  " 

This  address  created  such  an  impression,  that,  even 
after  forty  years,  the  memory  of  it  is  quite  vivid  to  at 
least  one  of  those  who  heard  it. 

I  have  another  friend  in  Cambridge,  Mr.  George 
Apthorpe,  one  of  the  deacons  of  St.  Andrew's  Church, 
who  formed  an  acquaintance  with  Mr.  Spurgeon  the 
first  Sunday  after  he  had  left  Newmarket,  and  who 
remained  one  of  his  supporters  to  the  very  end. 

In  one  of  his  letters  to  me  he  says,  "  No  sooner 
did  Mr.  Spurgeon  join  the  church  than  he  became  a 
Sunday-school  teacher.  His  class  in  the  school  was 
situated  next  to  mine,  and  so  interesting  was  the  new 
teacher's  conversation  with  his  scholars,  that  I  fre- 
quently endeavoured  to  listen  to  his  words,  and  was 
greatly  profited  by  the  remarks  I  overheard." 


68  The  Essex  Lad. 

This  gentleman  also  refers  to  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
peculiar  and  expressive  prayers  which  did  not  find 
acceptance  in  some  quarters  :  they  were,  in  fact,  too 
pointed  and  direct  in  their  appeals  to  please  some  of 
the  very  "  proper  "  people,  whose  manners  had  grown 
very  precise  because  they  had  lived  so  long  under  the 
shadow  of  the  University. 


MR.    SPURGEON'S   FATHER. 


CHAPTER    X. 

SHie  lapwing  of  Jtttradts- 

f^S^HOUSANDS  of  lives  have  been  changed 
by  the  wonderful  preaching  of  the  man 
of  God  whose  history  occupies  these 
pages  His  first  sermon  was  preached  in 
a  public-house,  his  second  in  a  stable,  and  his  third  in 
a  cottage.  These  were,  however,  but  the  beginning 
of  miracles,  even  as  turning  the  water  into  wine,  at 
Cana  of  Galilee,  was  only  the  first  of  the  wondrous 
works  of  our  Lord. 

As  a  boy,  our  Essex  lad  was  blessed  with  a  quick 
eye,  an  active  brain,  a  ready  tongue,  a  bold  spirit,  and 
a  tender  heart.  He  had  noticed,  in  Stambourne,  that, 
alongside  the  poor  people's  cottages  there  was  planted 
a  public-house.  Why  they  should  supply  poison 
here  as  well  as  food,  he  could  not  understand  ;  and  to 
many  besides  himself  these  things  are  mysteries  to 
this  day.  But  so  it  is.  Wherever  you  find  a  village 
containing  a  church,  or  a  chapel,  some  one  is  sure  to 
think  they  also  need  a  beer-shop.  In  a  country  village 
it  soon  becomes  known  who  supports  the  publican. 
There  are  few  secrets  in  a  small  community.  Mr. 
Jones  is  sure  to  know  if  Mr.  Williams's  horse  has 
gone  lame ;  if  Mr.  Brown's  cow  has  died,  all  the 
v.llage  knows  01  it  before  bedtime  ;  and  anybody  who 


yo  Uie  Essex  Lad. 

visited  the  public-house  could  not  expect  to  keep  it  a 
secret  very  long. 

Now,  a  village  tap-room  is  not  a  very  inviting  place 
for  anybody,  least  of  all  for  a  church-goer.  There  is 
generally  a  large,  bare  room,  with  a  round  table  on 
three  legs,  in  the  centre,  and  large  wooden  seats  with 
high  backs  all  round  the  room.  There  might,  perhaps, 
be  a  wooden  arm-chair  or  two,  and  spittoons  filled 
with  sawdust  underneath  them,  while  a  liberal  supply 
of  long  clay  pipes  is  usually  placed  on  the  table, 
ready  for  the  expected  customers. 

It  was  in  a  place  something  like  this  that  the 
venerable  James  Spurgeon's  grandson  preached  his 
first  sermon,  in  the  days  when  he  was  yet  a  ruddy 
lad,  dressed  in  a  short  jacket,  with  a  white  linen  collar. 
He  had  heard  his  dear  old  grandfather  say,  in  the 
manse,  how  sad  it  was  that  Old  Rhodes,  one  of  the 
members  of  the  church,  should  spend  so  much  of 
his  time  in  the  public-house,  sitting  in  the  seat  of 
the  scornful  ;  and  he  had  found  out  by  his  grand- 
father's prayers  what  a  real  trouble  it  was  to  him. 
The  tears  came  to  the  old  minister's  eyes  as  he 
prayed  for  him,  and  the  little  fellow,  when  he  saw 
them,  wished  that  this  man  could  be  made  to  stop  his 
conduct,  lest  he  should  break  his  grandfather's  heart. 

So  one  day,  when  he  heard  them  speaking  at  home 
about  the  man,  Charlie  put  in  his  little  say,  and 
astonished  them  all,  by  exclaiming, 

"  I'll  kill  Old  Rhodes  ;  that  I  will." 

"  Hush  !  hush  !  my  dear,"  said  his  grandfather  ; 
"  you  must  not  talk  like  that,  it  would  be  very  wrong 
to  kill  him  ;  and  I  am  sure  you  would  not  think  of 
doing  such  a  thing." 


The  Beginning  of  Miracles. 


71 


KILLING   OLD    RHODES. 


/2  The  Essex  Lad. 

"I  won't  do  anything  bad,"  said  Charlie  ;  "  but  I'll 
kill  old  Rhodes,  that  I  will ;  he  shan't  break  my 
grandfather's  heart  with  his  drinking  ways." 

Not  long  afterwards,  the  brave  "little  fellow  marched 
down  the  village,  and  walked  right  into  the  tap-room 
where  old  Rhodes  sat,  as  you  see  him  in  the  picture, 
with  a  big  mug  before  him  filled  with  something 
that  had  a  head  like  a  cauliflower,  and  which  was 
dirty  stuff  in  the  middle  and  muddy  at  the  bottom.  I 
wonder  if  my  little  readers  know  what  it  was  ?  Just 
as  old  Rhodes  was  about  to  drink  it,  having  taken 
his  pipe  out  of  his  mouth  for  that  purpose,  young 
Spurgeon  preached  out  his  first  sermon. 

Without  waiting  to  announce  his  subject,  he  pointed 
his  finger  at  the  old  man,  by  way  of  application,  and 
said,  in  a  tone  of  authority — 

"What  dost  thou  here,  Elijah,  sitting  with  the  un- 
godly ?  and  you  a  member  of  a  church,  breaking  your 
pastor's  heart  ;  I  am  ashamed  of  you  !  I  would  not 
break  my  pastor's  heart,  I'm  sure." 

Having  delivered  his  message,  he  walked  away ; 
but  the  sermon  had  struck  home  to  the  conscience  of 
that  old  man,  and  stuck  to  him  in  a  manner  that  his 
grandfather's  sermons  had  never  done. 

Charlie  returned  to  the  manse,  and  said — 

"  Grandfather,  don't  fret  ;  I  have  killed  old 
Rhodes." 

"  Killed  old  Rhodes  ! "  said  his  grandfather. 

"  I've  settled  him  this  time,"  said  the  youthful 
David,  who  had  slain  his  Goliath ;  "  he  won't  grieve 
my  dear  grandfather  any  more." 

Nothing  more  could  be  gleaned  from  the  boy  just 
then  as  to  what  had  taken  place  ;  but  some  time  after- 


The  Beginning  of  Miracles.  73 

wards,  old  Rhodes  himself  called  at  the  manse,  and 
told  the  minister  how  his  grandson  had  been  preach- 
ing- to  him  in  the  public-house  down  the  village.  He 
confessed  that  the  lad's  words  had  touched  his  heart, 
and  aroused  his  conscience,  and  said  that  he  was 
deeply  sorry  for  his  conduct.  He  asked,  the  forgive- 
ness of  his  pastor,  and  promised  that  such  an  incon- 
sistency should  never  occur  in  his  life  again.  And  it 
never  did.  He  was  so  ashamed  of  himself,  and  so 
repentant,  that  he  henceforth  became  a  comfort  to  his 
pastor,  a  credit  to  his  church,  and  a  blessing  to  the 
village.  That  was  the  effect  of  the  first  sermon  ;  truly, 
it  was  the  beginning  of  miracles  ! 

Some  time  afterwards,  the  second  sermon  was  de- 
livered. You  must  help  me  with  your  imagination 
while  I  endeavour  to  describe  to  you  the  circum- 
stances under  which  it  was  given.  The  scene  was  in 
a  stable,  at  the  rear  of  his  father's  house,  at  Colchester. 
One  day  his  father  came  suddenly  to  the  door,  and 
was  very  much  interested  and  amused  to  see  his  eldest 
son  perched  up  in  the  hayrack,  which  was  fitted  against 
the  wall.  His  short  fat  legs  were  hanging  through 
the  bars,  and  there  he  was  preaching  away  to  his 
heart's  content.  In  the  manger,  underneath  the 
preacher,  was  his  little  brother  James,  who  was  sup- 
posed to  be  a  clerk,  and  whose  duty  was  to  give  out 
the  hymns  and  notices.  Some  clean  straw  had  been 
scattered  on  t'.ie  floor  of  the  stable,  to  form  a  carpet 
for  what  answered  instead  of  the  big  square  pew.  A 
truss  of  hay  was  placed  in  the  centre  of  this,  and 
served  as  a  seat  for  the  two  little  girls,  who  sat  and 
listened  most  attentively  to  all  that  the  preacher  and 
the  clerk  said. 


74  The  Essex  Lad. 

To  these  children  their  service  was  very  real  and 
most  complete.  They  sang  together,  with  all  their 
hearts,  some  of  the  hymns  they  had  committed  to 
memory.  The  preaching  was,  at  any  rate,  most  inte- 
resting to  the  miniature  audience  ;  and  the  prayers, 
though  simple  and  childlike,  were  both  pleasing  to 
their  dear  grandfather,  and  acceptable  to  God,  who 
delights  to  hear  and  answer  children's  prayers. 

Now  comes  an  interval  of  years,  during  which  this 
little  man  had  come  to  a  saving  knowledge  of  the 
truth  in  Jesus;  had  confessed  his  faith  ;  and  in  Sunday- 
school,  and  in  the  prayer-meetings,  had  commended 
himself  to  many.  He  had  not,  however,  ventured  to 
conduct  a  regular  service,  until  a  memorable  Sunday 
evening,  when  he  preached  what  is  usually  spoken 
of  as  his  first  sermon,  but  which  I  have  called  the 
third. 

It  was  a  bright  sunny  Sunday  evening,  when  two 
young  men,  at  the  request  of  Mr.  Vinter  (or  as  Mr. 
Spurgeon  used  to  call  him  "  Bishop  Vinter,")  might 
have  been  seen  walking  across  the  fields,  to  a  village 
called  Teversham,  a  distance  of  four  miles  from 
Cambridge,  where,  during  the  afternoon  of  the  same 
day,  they  had  been  teaching  in  the  Sunday-school. 

One  of  these  two  young  men  was  the  young  tutor. 

His  companion  presently  said  to  him,  "  I  trust  you 
will  have  a  good  time  to-night,  with  the  villagers,  and 
that  God  will  bless  your  word  to  the  saving  of  some 
of  their  souls." 

"I  am  not  going  to  speak,"  said  young  Spurgeon. 
"  I  never  preached  in  my  life.  I  quite  understood 
that  I  was  to  go  to  Teversham  to  keep  you  company, 
.and  listen  to  what  you  had  to  say." 


The  Beginning  of  Miracles.  75 

"  But  I  have  nothing  to  say,  and  could  not  say  it  if 
I  had,"  replied  Mr.  Sadler. 

"Well,"  said  the  young  tutor,  "this  is  a  pretty  fix 
our  old  friend  has  placed  us  both  in." 

"  Yes,  indeed  it  is,"  said  his  companion,  "  but  you 
must  pull  us  out  of  it ;  I  cannot,  I  assure  you." 

It  was  quite  clear  before  they  reached  the  village 
that  the  responsibility  of  the  sermon  must  fall  upon 
Spurgeon  ;  so  looking  up  to  the  Lord  for  guidance 
and  help,  he  resolved  to  do  his  best. 

When  they  arrived  at  the  cottage,  where  the  service 
was  to  be  conducted,  with  much  fear  and  trembling 
he  conducted  the  meeting,  and  gave  an  address,  from 
the  words,  "  Unto  you,  ther-efore,  which  believe,  He  is 
precious."  On  this  subject,  he  spoke  out  of  a  heart 
wholly  devoted  to  Christ,  and  was  enabled  to  touch 
the  hearts  of  the  assembled  villagers. 

At  the  close  of  the  service,  an  elderly  dame  supple- 
mented her  expressions  of  surprise  by  venturing  to 
ask  the  preacher  his  age. 

"  Under  sixty,"  he  replied. 

11  Yes,  and  under  sixteen,"  added  the  woman. 

But  even  at  that  age,  he  was  still  able  to  discourse 
on  this  high  topic,  and  the  preciousness  of  Christ  has 
ever  since  been  the  theme  of  his  ministry,  and  the 
fragrance  of  his  life.  I  pray  that  Christ  may  be  pre- 
cious to  the  young  people  who  read  this  book,  as 
early  in  life  as  He  was  precious  to  him  ;  and  that  they 
may  know  His  saving  power  so  truly  that  they  may 
not  be  afraid  to  speak  of  it,  should  they  be  called 
upon  to  do  so. 

In  Mr.  Spurgeon's  case,  this  was  the  beginning  of 
miracles. 


CHAPTER    XL 

SUhe  tillage  fastar. 

AVING  begun  to  declare  the  gospel,  young 
J     Spurgeon     went    on     from     strength    to 
-p^jd  u     strength.      The  first   taste  of  the  joy  of 
<^^j{&r&     tne  servjce  only  whetted  his  appetite  for 

more.  And  thus  it  came  to  pass  that,  like  his  Master, 
he  went  round  about  the  villages  teaching  and  preach- 
ing, till  his  name  and  fame  became  widely  known. 
Wherever  he  went  he  always  did  his  best ;  and  the 
old  adage,  that  "  present  faithfulness  is  a  sure  guarantee 
of  future  success,"  was  abundantly  verified  in  his  case. 

One  Sunday  he  was  selected  by  the  Secretary  of 
the  "  Local  Preachers'  Association  "  in  Cambridge  to 
supply  the  pulpit  of  the  Baptist  Chapel  at  Water- 
beach,  a  village  containing  some  300  houses,  and  with 
a  population  of  about  1,200,  which  is  situated  some 
five  miles  from  the  University  town.  With  so  much 
acceptance  did  he  declare  the  Word,  that  he  was 
invited  to  come  again  and  again.  At  this  time,  the 
little  church  at  Waterbeach  was  in  a  very  weak  state, 
numbering  only  some  forty  members.  But  in  a  few 
months  the  chapel  proved  too  small  to  accommodate 
those  who  became  anxious  to  hear  this  popular 
preacher ;  and  best  of  all,  many  were  added  to  the  Lord. 

Seeing   this,    the    church    determined    to   call    the 


The    Village  Pastor. 


77 


youthful  preacher  to  the  pastorate.  So  poor  were 
they,  however,  that  the  most  they  could  promise  their 
new  Pastor  was  a  stipend  of  £40  a  year  ;  but  though 
the  sum  was  little,  such  was  his  love  for  preaching- 
Christ  that  he  accepted  the  call,  being  quite  satisfied 
that  if  the  villagers'  purses  were  small,  their  hearts 
were  large.  Therefore  he  determined  to  lead  them 
and  feed  them  by  the  grace  of  God,  to  the  best  of  his 
ability. 


THE   CHAPEL   AT    WATERBEACH. 

His  language  in  the  pulpit  was  at  times  very 
quaint,  striking,  and  graphic  ;  and  his  original  way  of 
enforcing  his  subject  upon  the  attention  of  the  con- 
gregation was  the  talk  of  the  people  for  miles  round. 
The  rumour  of  his  doings  reached  Cambridge,  and 
some  of  the  aristocratic  people  there  were  now  and 
then  shocked  by  some  expressive  figures  of  speech 
which  he  was  reported  to  have  used  in  the  pulpit. 

On    one   occasion,    in    describing   the    depravity   of 


7  8  The  Essex  Lad. 

unregenerate  men,  he  said  that  if  some  of  them  were 
allowed  to  enter  heaven  in  their  unconverted  state, 
they  would  pick  the  angels'  pockets. 

One  venerable  old  man  at  Cambridge,  named 
Brimley,  who  had  heard  of  this  extravagant  flight 
of  imagination  on  the  part  of  the  young  preacher, 
deemed  it  his  duty  to  stop  him  in  the  street  and 
expostulate  with  him  on  his  daring  metaphor.  He 
told  him  that  such  preaching  was  very  foolish,  and 
added  that  the  angels  have  no  pockets  to  be  picked. 

For  this  information  the  young  preacher  thanked 
his  venerable  friend  and  wished  him  "  Good  day." 

The  following  week  young  Spurgeon  met  Mr. 
Brimley,  and  stopping  him,  said, 

"  I  have  put  that  matter  right  with  my  people/' 

"What  do  you  mean?"  said  thisstately old  gentleman. 

"  I  told  my  people  on  Sunday,"  said  the  saucy 
young  preacher,  "  that  I  had  made  a  mistake  in  saying 
that  if  an  unconverted  man  were  allowed  to  enter 
heaven,  he  would  be  guilty  of  picking  the  angels' 
pockets,  for  Mr.  Brimley,  of  Cambridge,  says  the 
angels  have  no  pockets,  and  he  knows"  But  I  added, 
that  "  if  an  unconverted  man  entered  heaven  and  there 
were  no  pockets  to  pick,  he  would  very  probably 
pluck  the  very  feathers  out  of  the  angels'  wings." 

"  You  don't  mean  to  say  you  said  that  ?  "  said  old 
Brimley,  in  great  dismay. 

"Indeed  I  did,"  said  the  young  pastor.  "You 
know  I  must  be  right." 

"  Then  I  will  never  correct  you  again." 

"  That  is  just  what  I  wanted  you  to  say,"  retorted 
the  Waterbeach  Pastor,  at  which  they  shook  hands 
and  parted  good  friends. 


Tlce   Village  Pastor.  79 

It  was  no  easy  task  for  a  lad  of  seventeen  to  teach 
all  the  week,  and  then  to  preach  three  times  on 
Sundays.  But  a  fire  that  would  not  be  quenched 
burned  in  this  devoted  heart. 

Each  Sunday  at  Waterbeach  a  new  home  was 
provided  for  him.  So  great  was  the  desire  of  the 
people  to  have  him  under  their  roof,  and  so  hospitable 
were  they,  that  when  he  received  his  call  to  the 
Metropolis,  he  had  not  exhausted  his  long  list  of 
Sunday  accommodation. 

During  his  pastorate  at  Waterbeach,  he  still  resided 
at  Cambridge,  augmenting  his  stipend  by  the  income 
derived  from  teaching  during  the  week,  '  in  Mr. 
Leeding's  private  college.  I  have  heard  Mr.  Spurgeon 
say  that  at  that  time  he  used  to  keep  his  hands  in  his 
pockets  because  there  was  often  nothing  else  in  them. 

On  one  occasion  when  his  funds  were  low  and  he 
considered  his  hat  was  rather  shabby  for  a  village 
pastor,  and  knowing  it  was  considered  a  very  wrong 
thing  for  a  minister  of  the  gospel  to  wear  a  shabby 
hat,  he  prayed  to  the  Lord  to  send  him  the  money 
to  purchase  a  new  one.  He  quite  expected  the  Lord 
to  grant  his  request,  but  he  was  astonished  beyond 
measure  in  the  way  in  which  his  prayer  was  answered. 

There  was  an  old  man  who  lived  very  near  to  him, 
who  was  considered  by  everybody  to  be  a  stingy  old 
miser.  So  niggardly  was  he,  that  he  ordered  his 
coffin  before  he  died,  lest  anybody  should  make  any 
profit  out  of  it.  The  Sunday  after  Mr.  Spurgeon  had 
offered  his  prayer,  the  old  man  entered  his  vestry,  and 
said  to  the  young  preacher, 

"  Here  is  seven  and  sixpence,  Mr.  Spurgeon.  Will 
you  please  accept  it  and  pray  for  me  ?  " 


80  The  Essex  Lad. 

Mr.  Spurgeon  promised  to  pray  for  him,  thanked 
him  for  his  gift,  and  purchased  a  new  hat  with  the 
money  on  the  following  day. 

The  next  Sunday  the  same  old  man  again  appeared 
in  the  minister's  vestry,  and  said  in  a  trembling  voice, 
"  Mr.  Spurgeon,  will  you  please  still  continue  to 
pray  for  me,  for  T  am  afraid  I  am  growing  very 
covetous.  I  fear  my  covetous  nature  will  be  the 
ruin  of  me." 

"  I  am  surprised  to  hear  you  say  that,"  replied  the 
preacher,  "  for  last  Sunday  I  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  you  were  growing  quite  liberal.'"' 

"  No,  I  am  not,"  the  old  man  responded.  Last 
Sunday  the  Lord  distinctly  told  me  to  give  you  half 
a  sovereign,  but  such  was  my  greedy  nature,  that  I 
kept  back  half  a  crown  of  it," 

"  Oh,  if  that  is  it,"  said  the  boy  preacher,  "you  can 
easily  set  the  matter  right.  You  must  not  rob  God. 
If  the  Lord  told  you  to  give  me  ten  shillings,  and  you 
only  gave  me  seven  and  sixpence  you  will  have  no 
peace  until  you  give  me  the  other  half-crown." 

Out  came  a  bright  half-crown  from  the  old  miser's 
pocket,  and  he  handed  it  over  to  the  Pastor,  asking 
his  forgiveness,  and  returning  home  with  a  lighter 
heart  than  he  had  had  for  many  a  day. 

Now  that  Mr.  Spurgeon  had  become  the  Pastor  at 
Waterbeach,  his  success  there  made  it  apparent  to  all 
who  knew  him  that  his  future  life  must  be  that  of  a 
preacher  of  the  gospel.  Many  of  his  friends,  including 
his  own  father,  became  anxious  for  him  to  go  to 
college  to  complete  his  studies,  and  be  thoroughly 
equipped  for  this  high  calling  in  life. 

After  consultation  with  his  friends,  he  decided  to 


The    Village  Pastor.  81 


■a 


act  upon  their  advi;e,  and  accordingly  application 
was  made  to  what  is  now  known  as  Regent's  Park 
College.  Dr.  Angus,  the  principal  of  that  Institution, 
made  an  appointment  to  see  the  village  Pastor  at 
Cambridge,  which  town  he  was  soon  to  visit.  The 
interview  was  to  take  place  at  the  home  of  Mr. 
Macmillan,  the  publisher.  Mr.  Spurgeon  rose  early  for 
prayer  on  the  day  appointed  for  the  interview,  and 
sought  God's  guidance  in  the  great  and  important 
step  he  was  about  to  take. 

At  the  time  arranged,  and  at  the  tick  of  the  clock, 
he  was  at  the  front-door  of  Mr.  Macmillan's  house. 

He  rang  the  bell,  and  the  servant,  on  opening  the 
door,  asked  him  in,  and  conducted  him  into  a  private 
room,  and  there  he  sat  for  two  long  weary  hours,  till 
at  last  his  patience  could  stand  it  no  longer.  So  he 
rang  the  bell,  and  was  much  annoyed  to  find  that  the 
stupid  girl  had  not  announced  his  name,  and  had 
forgotten  all  about  his  being  in  the  house. 

Dr.  Angus  had  also  sat  waiting  in  an  adjoining 
room  until  his  patience  was  exhausted  too,  and  by 
the  time  the  discovery  was  made,  he  had  left  Cam- 
bridge by  train  for  London,  without  the  interview  thus 
arranged  ever  taking  place,  though  both  parties  were 
at  the  house  appointed  and  at  the  time  arranged. 

Through  this  servant's  mistake,  the  whole  course 
of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  life  was  entirely  changed.  God 
graciously  overruled  her  blunder  for  the  future  good 
of  the  village  Pastor  ;  and  He  so  directed  his  steps 
that  it  proved  a  blessing  to  the  whole  world. 

Finding  that  the  Principal  of  the  College  had 
returned  to  London,  Mr.  Spurgeon  adopted  a  very 
wise   course.     Being    engaged    to    preach    the   same 


82  The  Essex  Lad. 

afternoon  at  a  village,  and  feeling  downcast  and  dis- 
appointed, he  took  a  country  walk  alone.  Lifting  up 
his  heart  as  he  crossed  the  Common,  he  seemed 
to  hear  the  voice  of  God,  almost  audibly  saying  to 
him, 

"  Seekest  thou  great  things  for  thyself  ?  Seek 
them  not !" 

This  vivid  impression  gave  him  quite  a  new  view  oi 
things,  and  there  and  then  he  made  up  his  mind  not 
to  write  to  Dr.  Angus  and  explain  matters  as  he  had 
at  first  intended.  He  resolved  to  stay  at  Waterbeach, 
where  God  had  owned  his  labours,  even  though  he 
remained  in  humble  circumstances  for  the  rest  of  his 
life.     But  God  had  other  plans  for  him. 

The  Cambridge  Sunday  School  Union  is  an  efficient 
Institution,  and  to  seethe  beautiful  Guildhall  crowded 
with  Sunday-school  children  on  their  Anniversary 
occasions  is  a  sight,  once  seen,  never  to  be  forgotten. 
It  was  while  I  was  delivering  an  address  at  this  united 
gathering  of  children  on  16th  April,  1876,  that  my 
esteemed  colleague,  Mr.  W.  Y.  Fullerton,  first  saw 
me  and  heard  me  speak.  Twenty-three  years  pre- 
viously, on  a  similar  Anniversary  occasion  in  1853, 
Mr.  Gould,  a  deacon  of  the  Baptist  Church  at 
Loughton,  in  Essex,  first  heard  the  young  preacher 
from  Waterbeach,  and  he  was  so  much  impressed 
with  his  ability  and  spiritual  power,  that  he  strongly 
recommended  Mr.  Thomas  Olney,  one  of  the  deacons 
of  the  New  Park  Street  Baptist  Chapel,  to  invite  the 
village  Pastor  to  preach  in  London.  The  Guildhall 
in  Cambridge,  was  J:hus  memorable  both  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon  and  to  me.  What  the  result  was  in  his 
case  is  already  known  to  all  the  world. 


CHAPTER   XII. 


cjrom  t\\t  fflxivm  to  the  <pg. 


NE  Lord's-day  morning,  in  December,  1853, 
a  letter,  bearing  the  London  postmark, 
was  handed  by  one  of  the  deacons  of  the 
church  at  Waterbeach,  to  Mr.  Spurgeon, 
as  he  sat  in  the  table-pew  for  a  few  minutes'  rest 
before  commencing  his  pastoral  duties  for  the  day.  Dr. 
Rippon's  Hymn-book  was  in  his  hand,  and  he  was 
just  choosing  the  hymns  for  the  morning  service, 
when  he  opened  the  letter  and  found  it  to  be  an  in- 
vitation to  occupy  the  pulpit  of  the  great  hymn- 
compiler  at  New  Park  Street,  Southwark. 

With  some  surprise,  he  turned  to  one  of  the  deacons 
and,  handing  him  the  letter,  said — 

"There  must  be  some  mistake  here." 

"  I  am  afraid  there  is  no  mistake,"  replied  the  old 
man,  shaking  his  head  ;  "  I  was  sure  we  could  not 
keep  you  very  long  in  our  village." 

The  preacher  put  the  letter  in  his  pocket,  and  lifting 
his  heart  to  God  for  blessing  on  that  day's  labours, 
and  for  guidance  on  the  morrow,  he  thought  no  more 
about  it,  until  the  work  of  the  day  had  ceased.  The 
following  morning  he  wrote  saying  that  they  had 
made  a  mistake  in  inviting  him  to  a  London  pulpit, 

4* 


84 


The  Essex  Lad. 


and   that  he  is  quite  unfit  for  such  a  responsibility, 
being  only  nineteen  years  old. 

He  received  a  reply,  assuring  him  that  there  was  no 
mistake  ;  that  the  deacons  of  the  church  had  a  strong 
desire  that  he  should  occupy  their  pulpit ;  and  to 
make  the  matter  still  more  definite,  they  told  him 
that  he  would  find  comfortable  accommodation  at 
Queen  Square,  Bloomsbury.  So  it  seemed  as  if  he 
must  accept  the  invitation. 


NEW    PARK    STREET   CHAPEL. 

It  was  on  a  cold  day,  in  the  same  month,  when  he 
preached  his  first  sermon  before  a  London  audience. 
He  ascended  the  platform  with  that  modest  de- 
meanour, and  real  reverence,  which  becomes  a  true 
ambassador  of  the  gospel  message.  His  first  prayer 
in  the  pulpit  soon  called  forth  ejaculations  of  praise 
in  the  pew.  The  text  was,  "  Every  good  gift  and 
every  perfect  gift  is  from  above,  and  cometh  down 
from  the  Father  of  lights,  with  whom  is  no  variable- 
ness,  neither   shadow  of  turning."     He   had   not    to 


From  the  Shires  to  the  City.  85 

carry  his  subject ;  for  it  was  apparent  to  all  who 
heard  him  that  his  subject  carried  him  ;  losing  sight  of 
the  hundreds  of  empty  seats  around  him,  he  warmed 
up  as  he  proceeded  with  his  theme,  so  that  the  hearts  of 
those  who  formed  his  congregation  were  all  aglow, 
as  if  they  had  been  touched  by  the  divine  flame  from 
the  altar  of  God. 

On  this  memorable  Sunday,  both  the  preacher  and 
the  sermon  were,  without  doubt,  divinely  appointed. 
The  previous  day,  as  the  youthful  preacher  had  tra- 
velled to  London,  the  words,  "  He  must  needs  go 
through  Samaria,"  had  kept  running  through  his  mind, 
and  he  meditated  a  good  deal  upon  them  during  the 
Saturday  night  and  early  Sunday  morning.  But  on 
arriving  at  the  chapel,  he  was  guided  by  God's  good 
Spirit  to  choose  the  other  subject. 

His  general  appearance  in  the  pulpit  showed  un- 
mistakably that  he  was  not  a  Londoner  ;  his  garments 
were  not  of  the  city  style  ;  and  neither  the  cut  of  his 
coat,  nor  the  shape  of  his  collar,  gave  any  indication 
oi  an  ecclesiastical  calling.  Even  the  officers  of  the 
church,  who  had  invited  him  to  supply  their  pulpit, 
were  not  at  all  struck  with  the  first  sight  of  him  ; 
but  after  listening  to  his  powerful  discourse,  all  thought 
of  the  man's  personal  appearance  vanished  from  their 
minds  in  the  impression  he  produced.  His  manner 
was  lost  in  his  matter  ;  and  they  were  unanimous  that 
he  was  a  God-sent  man. 

During  the  afternoon,  the  news  that  the  beardless 
boy  from  the  country  had  preached  that  morning  a 
marvellous  sermon,  spread  like  wildfire  among  the 
N^w  Park  Street  friends.  His  personality,  and  his 
peculiarities  were  talked  of,  as  well  as  his  subject. 


86  The  Essex  Lad. 

One  said,  "  Did  you  see  what  a  huge  black  satin 
stock  the  young  preacher  had  on  this  morning?" 

Another  young  lady  had  noticed  that  there  were 
actually  blue  spots  upon  his  pocket-handkerchief. 

Owing  to  the  various  reports  circulated  during  the 
day,  the  evening  congregation  had  increased  con- 
siderably. The  text  on  this  occasion  was,  "  They  are 
without  fault  before  the  throne  of  God."  I  hope  my 
young  friends  will  find  out  both  these  texts  in  their 
Bibles,  and  put  a  mark  against  them.  The  first  was 
true  of  Mr.  Spurgeon  while  he  was  here  ;  the  second 
is  fulfilled  for  him  now. 

Whatever  the  people  thought  of  the  preacher  that 
day,  they  were  convinced  that  they  had  never  heard 
anything  like  such  sermons  in  New  Fark  Street  before; 
and  many  refused  to  leave  the  chapel  until  they  had 
received  a  definite  promise  from  the  deacons  that  Mr. 
Spurgeon  would  be  invited  to  preach  there  again  with 
a  view  to  the  pastorate. 

This  Sunday  was,  doubtless,  a  great  ordeal  for  the 
youthful  preacher  ;  but  it  proved  to  be  a  wonderful 
day  for  the  history  of  that  church.  Truly  might  the 
preacher,  the  deacons,  and  the  church-members  have 
written  on  the  tablets  of  their  hearts  the  words  which 
Moses  spake  unto  the  people,  "  Remember  this  day." 
(Can  you  find  that  text?) 

In  a  few  days,  the  preacher  was  heartily  and  unani- 
mously invited  to  occupy  the  pulpit  for  six  months, 
in  anticipation  of  a  more  permanent  arrangement. 
He  replied  to  this  overture  in  a  modest,  and  manly 
letter,  in  which  his  simplicity  and  business  capacity 
were  clearly  shown.  We  have  not  room  for  it  all ;  but 
as  an   example  of  the  spirit  in  which  a  young  man 


From  the  Shires  to  the  City.  87 

should  enter  upon  a  great  undertaking,  read  this 
paragraph,  and  then  imitate  the  unassuming  inde- 
pendence of  it.     He  says — 

"With  regard  to  a  six  months'  invitation  from  you, 
I  have  no  objection  to  the  length  of  time,  but  rather 
approve  of  the  prudence  of  the  church  in  wishing  to 
have  one  so  young  as  myself  on  an  extended  period  01 
approbation.  But  I  write  after  well  weighing  the 
matter,  when  I  say  positively  that  I  cannot,  I  dare 
not,  accept  an  unqualified  invitation  for  so  long  a 
:ime.  My  objection  is  not  to  the  length  of  time  of 
probation,  but  it  ill  becomes  a  youth  to  promise  to 
preach  to  a  London  congregation  so  long,  until  he 
knows  them  and  they  know  him.  I  would  engage  to 
supply  for  three  months  of  that  time,  and  then,  should 
the  congregation  fail,  or  the  church  disagree,  I  would 
reserve  to  myself  liberty,  without  breach  of  engage- 
ment, to  retire  ;  and  you  would,  on  your  part,  have 
the  right  to  dismiss  me  without  seeming  to  treat 
me  ill." 

The  letter  concludes  with  an  earnest  request  that 
prayer  should  be  offered  on  his  behalf;  for  he  early 
realized  that  only  as  God  blessed  him  would  he  be 
prospered. 

An  interesting  advertisement  which  appeared  in 
a  Cambridge  newspaper  about  the  end  of  the 
year  1853,  shows  that  before  receiving  the  invitation 
to  London,  Mr.  Spurgeon  had  arranged  to  begin 
a  School .  on  his  own  account,  in  addition  to  his 
Village  Pastorate.  He  had,  indeed,  obtained  two 
pupils  ere  he  left.  Here  is  the  announcement 
of  his  intentionr,  which  gives  some  idea  of  his 
attainments. 


88  The  Essex  Lad, 

"  No.  6d,  Upper  Park  Street,  Cambridge. 

"  Mr.  C.  H.  Spurgeon  begs  to  inform  his  numerous 
friends  that,  after  Christmas,  he  intends  taking  six 
or  seven  young  gentlemen  as  day  pupils.  He  will 
endeavour  to  the  utmost  to  impart  a  good  commercial 
education.  The  ordinary  routine  will  include  arith- 
metic, algebra,  geometry,  and  mensuration  ;  grammar 
and  composition ;  ancient  and  modern  history ; 
geography,  natural  history,  astronomy,  Scripture 
and  drawing.  Latin,  and  the  elements  of  Greek  and 
French,  if  required.     Terms  £$  per  annum." 

Before  finally  leaving  for  London,  he  called  to  bid 
farewell  to  a  friend  of  mine  at  Cambridge,  who  has  a 
distinct  recollection  of  the  conversation  of  that  visit. 
The  youthful  pastor  talked  much  of  the  great  responsi- 
bility of  accepting  the  call  to  the  Metropolis,  yet  he 
said  that  he  had  made  up  his  mind  to  go  about  his 
work  in  London  just  the  same  as  if  he  had  remained 
at  Waterbeach. 

"  I  intend,"  he  added,  "  to  use  the  same  methods, 
to  preach  the  same  gospel,  relying  implicitly  upon  the 
study  of  God's  Word,  and  the  aid  of  the  Holy  Spirit." 

The  history  of  his  future  work  shows  that  he  faith- 
fully adhered  to  his  resolve. 

So  it  came  to  pass  that  Mr.  Spurgeon  left  60,  Park 
Street,  Cambridge,  to  preach  at  New  Park  Street, 
London  ;  and  long  betore  the  six  months  had  expired, 
it  was  quite  clear  to  everybody  that  he  must  continue 
in  his  new  sphere. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

fj-oplaritg  and  $;um. 

^^pf^^HE  "boy  preacher"  soon  became  a  house- 
hold topic  in  London.  If  ever  the  city 
was  taken  by  storm,  it  was  by  this  brave, 
sharp-eyed  country  pastor.  His  voice  was 
as  clear  as  a  clarion-note.  He  spake  right  from  his 
heart  what  he  believed  to  be  true,  and  had  the  courage 
of  his  convictions.  He  fawned  for  no  man's  favour, 
nor  feared  any  man's  frowm  Plainly  and  faithfully 
he  proclaimed  the  blessed  gospel  of  God  to  the  great 
crowds  which  gathered  together.  And  they  were 
crowds  !  Many  were  drawn  by  curiosity  to  see  and 
hear  the  young  man  who  had  so  marvellously  moved 
the  multitudes  by  his  eloquence  and  power,  and  many 
by  awakening  interest  in  the  truth,  until  New  Park 
Street  Chapel  became  totally  inadequate  to  contain 
all  who  came  ;  and  as  to  the  atmosphere  during  the 
services,  the  place  was  compared,  by  the  preacher 
himself,  to  the  Black  Hole  of  Calcutta. 

During  the  summer  months,  Asiatic  Cholera  proved 
a  dreadful  scourge  throughout  London.  The  black 
flag  was  hung  across  many  streets,  warning  the 
strangers  of  the  plague-stricken  dwellings.  The  young 
Pastor  went  in  and  out  among  the  people  like  a  very 
angel    sent  from   God.     Even  in  the  middle  of   the 


90  The  Essex  Lad. 

night,  his  lonely  foot -fall  might  have  been  heard  upon 
the  pavement,  as  he  went  about  visiting  the  sick  and 
dying.  His  time  and  strength  were  taxed  to  the 
uttermost.  Family  after  family  of  his  faithful  flock 
was  stricken  and  smitten  by  the  plague,  so  that 
almost  every  day  he  was  called  to  the  graveside. 

One  day,  when  his  heart  was  well-nigh  sinking,  and 
he  almost  despaired  of  surviving  the  epidemic,  he  was 
greatly  cheered  as  he  went  back  sad  at  heart  to  his 
home,  by  reading  a  paper  in  a  shoemaker's  window, 
which  seemed  like  a  message  from  God  to  him.  It 
was  written  in  a  bold,  clear  hand,  as  follows — "  Because 
thou  hast  made  the  Lord,  which  is  my  refuge,  even 
the  Most  High,  thy  habitation,  there  shall  no  evil 
befall  thee,  neither  shall  any  plague  come  nigh  thy 
dwelling." 

He  stood  for  some  time  opposite  the  window, 
wondering  at  the  appropriate  message,  and  a  strong 
conviction  took  hold  of  him  that  he  would  be  pre- 
served and  brought  safely  through  the  time  of 
pestilence.  He  believed  he  owed  his  life  to  that  bill 
in  the  window,  though  in  after  years  he  could  never 
accurately  discover  who  had  put  it  there. 

No  man  in  this  world  was  more  vilified  than 
Spurgeon  was  at  this  time.  Everybody  who  becomes 
popular  has  to  pay  for  it  in  some  shape  or  other,  but 
the  treatment  this  good  man  received  was  exceptional 
in  its  severity.  Negro  minstrels  ridiculed  him  in  their 
songs  ;  actors  in  the  play  cracked  rude  jokes  at  his 
expense  ;  ridiculous  cartoons  of  him  were  issued, 
depicting  him  in  anything  but  complimentary  attitudes. 
One  of  them  represented  him  as  a  seller  of  fly  papers, 
and   was  entitled   "  Catch-'em-alive-O ! "  ;  but  this  is 


Popularity  and  Panic. 


91 


only   a  sample  of  scores.     The  newspapers  spoke  of 
him  as  the  "  Essex  bumpkin." 

If  scorn  and  derision  could  have  stopped  his  use- 
fulness, he  had  enough  to  have  killed  him  ten  times 
over  ;  but  I  have  heard  him  say  that,  when  these 
things  were  said  about  him,  they  hurt  him  less  than 


"  catch-'em-alive-o  ! " 

the  fulsome  eulogies  of  later  years.  He  comforted 
his  heart  by  saying  that  no  one  could  say  worse 
things  about  him  than  he  could  say  about  himself; 
for  though  his  outward  life  was  blameless,  he  truly 
knew  his  own  heart  as  it  was  revealed  in  the  presence 


92  The  Essex  Lad. 

of  God.  In  that  presence  he  lived  ;  and  through 
evil  report,  and  through  good  report,  he  went  straight 
on  with  his  life's  work,  telling  sinners  how  they  might 
be  saved,  and  teaching  saints  so  to  live  as  to  bring 
glory  to  God. 

So  crowded  did  the  sanctuary  at  New  Park  Street 
at  length  become,  that  one  Sunday  night  the  preacher 
exclaimed  during  his  discourse, — 

"  By  faith  the  walls  of  Jericho  fell  down,  and  by 
faith  this  wall  at  the  back  shall  come  down  too." 

One  prudent  deacon  expressed  his  disapproval  of 
this  remark,  in  strong  language,  at  the  close  of  the 
service. 

"  I  hope  we  shall  never  hear  such  a  thing  again," 
he  said. 

"  You  will  hear  no  more  about  it  when  it  is  done," 
said  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "  so  the  sooner  you  set  about  it,  the 
better  it  whI  be  for  all  concerned." 

His  prophecy  was  true.  Quite  early  the  following 
year  the  wall  was  down,  and  the  place  was  being 
enlarged.  The  congregation  assembled  meanwhile  in 
Exeter  Hall.  But  even  after  the  building  at  New 
Park  Street  was  enlarged,  it  could  not  accommodate 
the  crowds  which  came,  so  the  deacons  were  compelled 
to  obtain  a  larger  place.  The  largest  available  build- 
ing was  the  Music  Hall,  belonging  to  the  Royal  Surrey 
Gardens  ;  and  although  such  a  thing  was  then  un- 
heard of,  this  hall  was  engaged  for  the  Sunday  evening 
services. 

On  19th  of  October,  1856,  the  first  service  was  held 
there,  and  it  is  estimated  that  quite  12,000  persons 
thronged  to  it.  All  the  approaches  were  crowded, 
and  many  were  unable  to  get  near  the  building.     The 


Popularity  and  Panic. 


93 


service  had  only  proceeded  as  far  as  the  second 
prayer,  when  suddenly,  from  various  parts  of  the 
hall,  there  arose  a  cry  of  "  Fire !  Fire ! "  and  the 
audience  was  seized  with  a  sudden  panic.  A  scene 
of  wild  confusion  followed  ;  men  and  women  rushed 
for  the  doors,  trampling  upon  each  other  in  their 
anxiety  to  get  out.  Several  persons  were  killed,  and 
many    more    were    seriously  injured.     Mr.    Spurgeon 


IjJILlLI. 


sip  - 


SURREY    MUSIC    HALL. 


endeavoured  to  still  the  panic,  and  was  in  great 
measure  successful,  but  the  shock  to  his  system  was 
so  great  that  for  weeks  he  was  unable  to  preach  ; 
indeed,  he  never  fully  threw  off  the  effects  of  it. 
About  nine  months  before  he  was  called  to  hig-her 
service,  he  said,  referring  to  this  sad  time  : — 

"  After  the  terrible  accident  in  the  Surrey  Gardens 
I  had  to  go  away  into  the  country,  and  keep  quite 


94  The  Essex  Lad. 

still.  The  very  sight  of  the  Bible  made  me  cry.  I 
•could  but  keep  alone  in  the  garden  ;  and  I  was  heavy 
and  sad,  for  people  had  been  killed  in  the  accident  ; 
and  there  I  was,  half  dead  myself.  I  remember 
how  I  got  back  my  comfort,  and  I  preached  on  the 
Sabbath  after  I  recovered.  I  had  been  walking  round 
the  garden,  and  I  was  standing  under  a  tree.  If  it  is 
there  now,  I  should  know  it ;  and  I  remembered  these 
words  :  "  Him  hath  God  exalted  with  his  right  hand 
to  be  a  Prince  and  a  Saviour  " 

"  Oh",  I  thought  to  myself,  "  I  am  only  a  common 
soldier.  If  I  die  in  a  ditch,  I  do  not  care.  The  king 
is  honoured.  He  wins  the  victory  ;  "  and  I  was  like 
those  French  soldiers  in  the  old  times,  who  loved  the 
emperor  ;  and  you  know  how,  when  they  were  dying, 
if  he  rode  by,  the  wounded  man  would  raise  himself  up 
on  his  elbow,  and  cry  once  more,  '  Vive  V Empereur  !  * 
for  the  emperor  was  graven  on  his  heart." 

He  immediately  returned  to  the  house  and  was 
able  to  conduct  family  worship,  and  the  very  next 
Sunday  renewed  his  preaching  in  the  Music  Hall.  In 
view  of  the  accident,  services  were  only  held  there 
in  the  mornings.  They  were  continued  with  the 
greatest  success  and  blessing ;  being,  in  fact,  the 
ereat  attraction  to  all  classes  in  London.     But  when 

o 

the  grounds  cf  the  Hall  were  opened  by  the  proprietors 
for  Sunday  evening  amusements,  Mr.  Spurgeon,  un- 
able to  lend  countenance  to  such  a  proceeding,  re- 
moved for  the  second  time  to  Exeter  Hall,  and 
remained  there  until  the  new  Tabernacle  was  opened. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 


Che  §mt  Sfakrnacle. 


l-^K^N  the  year  1856  the  first  meeting  was  held 
to  consider  the  plan  for  the  erection  of 
the  Metropolitan  Tabernacle.  At  that 
time  the  idea  was  thought  by  many  to  be 
Spurgeon's  folly  ;  they  laughed  at  the  idea  of  building 
a  place  of  worship  to  hold  five  thousand  persons,  and 
some  even  went  so  far  as  to  say  that  another  Noah 
had  begun  to  build  a  second  ark. 

But  amidst  these  jeers  there  were  many  who  be- 
lieved in  the  man,  and  could  trace  God's  fingers  in 
the  work.  It  was  no  child's  play  to  take  the  lead  in 
such  a  task.  Many  a  man  with  fifty  years'  experience 
at  his  back,  would  have  shrunk  from  such  an  under- 
taking. 

A  gentleman  in  the  West  of  England,  who  had 
never  seen  Mr.  Spurgeon,  sent  .£5,000  towards  the 
building  fund.  Another  gentleman  met  him,  when 
out  driving,  and  said,  "  You  have  a  big  business  in 
hand  in  building  that  Tabernacle,  and  you  will  find 
many  friends  will  become  nervous  about  it  before  it 
is  finished.  I  feel  sure  you  will  succeed,  for  God  is  in 
your  work.  Let  me  encourage  you.  I  will  give  you 
£$0  ;  but,  in  addition  to  that,  1  will  lend  you  bonds 
worth  £20,000,  free  of  interest,  so  that  you  may  always 


96 


The  Essex  Lad. 


have  something  to  fall  back  upon  during  the  building 
of  the  Tabernacle. 

The  next  day  the  bonds  were  deposited  in  Mr. 
Spurgeon's  hands.  He  said  nothing  about  it  at  the 
time,  but  all  the  while  the  work  was  in  progress  he 
had  that  large  sum  of  money  in  hand,  ready  for  any 
emergency  ;  and  when  the  building  was  opened  free 
of  debt,  he  returned  the  deposit  to  his  friend,  with 
grateful  thanks  for  his  encouragement  and  kindness 


During  the  building  of  the  immense  edifice,  Mr. 
Spurgeon  went  up  and  down  the  land,  preaching 
almost  everywhere,  and  collecting  money  for  the  new 
building.  Nearly  all  the  towns  and  cities  of.  Scot- 
land, Ireland,  and  Wales  were  visited  by  him  during 
this  period.  Thousands,  and  even  tens  of  thousands, 
were  gathered   together  to    hear  his   words.     Some- 


The  Great  Tabernacle.  97 

times  he  preached  under  a  fine  spreading  tree,  with  a 
farmer's  waggon  for  a  pulpit  ;  at  other  times,  tempo- 
rary buildings  were  erected,  or  a  large  courtyard 
covered  in  with  canvas,  to  form  a  huge  tent  for  the  day. 

Far  and  wide,  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  privileged  to 
preach  during  his  life.  At  Geneva,  he  preached  in 
Calvin's  pulpit.  In  Holland,  he  proclaimed  the  same 
old  gospel  before  the  Dutch  Court ;  and  afterwards 
he  had  an  interview  with  the  Queen  of  Holland,  and 
spoke  to  her  on  spiritual  subjects. 

In  this  way  his  fame  was  blazed  abroad,  his  word 
was  blessed,  much  of  the  money  raised,  and  the  work 
of  the  Lord  greatly  extended. 

The  hearts  of  God's  children  were  touched  in  all 
parts  of  the  world,  till  the  entire  cost  of  the  erection 
of  the  great  Tabernacle,  ^3 1,000,  was  in  hand. 

The  builder,  Mr.  William  Higgs,  was  a  man  in  full 
sympathy,  becoming  afterwards  one  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
deacons ;  and  only  good,  sound  workmanship  was 
allowed  to  go  into  the  structure. 

Mr.  Spurgeon  and  Mr.  Cook,  another  deacon, 
one  night  knelt  amidst  the  planks,  piles  of  timber, 
bricks,  sand,  lime,  and  tools,  with  the  stars  of  heaven 
twinkling  over  their  heads,  like  angels'  eyes  watching 
them.  They  prayed  for  the  safety  of  the  workmen 
during  the  erection  of  the  place,  and  that  God's 
richest  blessing  might  rest  upon  the  building  when  it 
was  completed.  Their  prayers  were  answered,  for  not 
a  single  serious  accident  occurred  during  the  opera- 
tions. 

On  Tuesday,  16th  of  August,  1859,  the  first  stone 
was  laid  by  Sir  Morton  Peto,  and  the  stone-laying 
was  followed  by  a  tea  and   public   meeting,  attended 


98 


The  Essex  Lad. 


Headed 

Speaker, 

Handling 

Subjects, 

Hearted 

Style ; 

Hosts  of 

Surrey  ; 

Hating 

Spirit  ; 

Heating 

Skill  ; 

Hushing 

Soother  ; 

Honouring 

Soldier  ; 

Honoured 

Servant.'' 

by  more  than  2,000  persons.  The  evening  meeting 
was  presided  over  by  the  Mayor  of  Colchester,  and 
some  racy  speeches  were  made. 

Judge  Payne,  in   the  midst   of  his  interesting   re- 
marks, made  the  following  play  upon  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
initials.     He  said  "C.  H.  S.  means — 
A     Clear 
who  is     Clever  at 
in  a     Cheerful 
he  is     Captain  of  the 
he  is  a     Cold- 
he  has  a     Chapel- 
he  is  a     Care- 
he  is  a     Christ- 
and  a     Christ 
Of  the  wonderful  scenes  which  have  been  witnessed 
within  the  walls  of  this  sanctuary,  I  have  no  space  to 
speak.     All  sorts  of  people  have  gathered  here  and 
listened  to  the  gospel.     For  over  thirty  years  it  has 
been  crowded  week  by  week,  and  strangers,  especially 
Americans,  who  have  visited   London,    have   always 
made  it  a  point  to  hear  "  Spurgeon,"  before  they  left 
The  larger  biographies  will  tell  you  all  about  this. 

Some  years  ago  the  widow  of  the  murdered  Presi- 
dent of  America,  James  A.  Garfield,  wrote  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon.  "  It  is  a  choice  treasure  from  my  store- 
house of  beautiful  memories,"  she  says  "that  I  sat 
beside  General  Garfield  in  the  Metropolitan  Taber- 
nacle, one  bright  summer  Sunday  morning  (August 
4th,  1867),  and  listened  to  your  voice.  I  have  this 
morning  re-read  from  his  journal  his  account  of  that 
day.  A  sentence  from  it  may  interest  you.  After 
describing  his  impressions  of  the  great  audience,  of  the 


The  Great   Tabernacle. 


99 


preacher,  and  of  the  sermon,  he  adds  :  "  God  bless  Mr. 
Spurgeon  !  He  is  helping  to  work  out  the  problem  of 
religious  and  civil  freedom  for  England  in  a  way  that 
he  knows  not  of." 

Mr.  Spurgeon's  brother,  James  A.   Spurgeon,  who 

was  his  chief  helper  for  many  years,  is  now  Pastor  ot 

the    Tabernacle,   and  while    I    write,    Dr.    Arthur   T. 

"Pierson,  from   America,  is  officiating  as  Minister,  and 

the  Lord  is  abundantly  blessing  both  word  and  work. 


MR.    SPURGEON'S   BROTHER. 


*SL 


CHAPTER  XV. 

Stftc  frincc  of  $rmhxb. 


~F   many  preachers  it   may  be   said,  as    of 
Saul,  that  they  have  slain  their  thousands, 


but  Mr.  Spurgeon,  like  David,  has  slain 
his  tens  of  thousands.  Judged  by  results 
he  stands  without  a  peer  in  the  pulpit,  a  very  prince 
amongst  preachers. 

When  a  man  is  a  gifted  preacher  he  feels  at  home 
in  the  pulpit,  and  can  truly  say  that  his  pulpit  is 
his  home.  He  delights  to  be  in  it.  If  ever  any 
man  in  this  world  loved  to  be  in  the  pulpit,  it  was 
C.  H.  Spurgeon.  He  knew  what  he  believed,  and 
why  he  believed  it ;  he  got  a  grip  of  real  things  at  the 
start,  and  when  the  storms  and  cross-winds  of  life 
came  upon  him  he  always  had  a  big  tap-root  to  stay 
and  steady  him.  Early  piety  and  good  training  when 
he  was  yet  a  lad  did  much  lor  him  when  he  became  a 
preacher. 

Even  while  yet  a  youth  he  had  learnt  to  speak  as 
the  oracle  of  God.  Mr.  James  Spurgeon  says  of  these 
early  days  :  "  I  remember  driving  my  brother  about 
the  country  to  preach,  and  I  used  to  think  then,  as  I 
have  thought  ever  since,  what  an  extraordinary 
preacher  he  was.  I  began  to  admire  him,  and  I  went 
on  doing  it  more  and  more  the  longer   I   knew  him. 


The  Prince  of  Preachers.  101 

Oh,  what  wonderful  unction  and  power  I  remember 
in  some  of  those  first  speeches  of  his  !  I  have  no  doubt 
that  I  was  more  impressible  then  than  afterwards  ; 
but  the  impressions  made  then  on  others,  I  am  sure, 
were  as  deep  as  any  that  were  ever  made  subsequently, 
and  certainly  the  effect  upon  the  people  listening  to 
him  I  never  knew  exceeded  in  after  years.  He  seemed 
to  have  leaped  into  the  pulpit  full-grown.  It  was 
wonderful. 

"  I  can  still  remember  distinctly  some  of  his  early 
sermons.  Their  breadth  and  brilliance,  and  the  power 
that  God's  Holy  Spirit  evidently  gave  to  him,  were 
perfectly  marvellous.  I  have  traced  since  not  more 
genius,  I  think,  than  impressed  me  then,  but  more 
breadth,  more  depth,  more  spirituality,  more  of  God's 
own  Word  as  to  the  knowledge  both  of  the  letter  of  it 
and  of  its  inner  meaning.  But  I  thank  God  that  my 
first  impressions  of  my  brother  are  amongst  the 
brightest  and  best,  and  I  have  had  no  cause  to 
change  my  opinion  from  that  time  to  this.  He  was 
a  God-made  man  and  a  God-sent  man  to  his  acre, 
and  by  the  grace  of  God  he  has  been  faithful  to 
his  mission  all  through  his  life." 

How  did  the  young  preacher  prepare  his  sermons  ? 
He  was  a  born  preacher,  but  this  in  itself  was  not 
enough.  He  lived  in  such  close  communion  with 
God,  that  he  was  ever  ready  to  receive  messages  from 
his  Master,  and  he  kept  storing  his  mind  with  Bible 
truth,  and  all  sorts  of  useful  knowledge,  which  he  was 
able  to  utilize  as  he  preached.  He  was  also  ever 
ready  to  receive  suggestions  from  passing  events. 

Speaking,  some  years  ago,  of  the  Lord's  goodness 
in  aiding  him  in  times  of  extra  pressure,  when  lack 


102  The  Essex  Lad. 

of  leisure  had  prevented  him  from  preparing  his 
subject,  Mr.  Spurgeon  recorded  a  very  interesting 
incident. 

"  While  labouring  at  Waterbeach,  one  Sunday- 
morning,  after  preaching,  I  went  home  to  dine  with 
one  of  my  congregation.  The  afternoon  sermon 
came  so  close  upon  the  back  of  the  morning  one, 
that  it  was  difficult  to  prepare,  especially  as  dinner 
was  a  necessity.  On  that  occasion  I  found  my  pre- 
arranged line  of  thought  had  all  gone  from  me. 
Press  my  forehead  as  I  might— the  missing  topic 
would  not  come.  Time  was  brief,  the  hour  was 
striking,  and  in  some  alarm  I  told  the  honest  farmer 
I  could  not  recollect  what  I  had  intended  to  preach 
about." 

"  Ah,"  he  said,  "  never  mind,  you  will  be  sure  to 
have  a  good  word  for  us." 

"Just  at  that  moment,  a  blazing  block  of  wood 
fell  out  of  the  fire  upon  the  hearth  at  my  feet, 
smoking  into  one's  eyes  and  nose  at  a  great  rate." 

" '  There,'  said  the  farmer,  '  there's  a  text  for  you, 
sir.     Is  not  this  a  brand  plucked  out  of  the  fire  ?  ' 

"  No,  I  thought ;  it  was  not  plucked  out,  it  fell  out 
of  itself.  Here  was  a  text,  an  illustration,  and  a 
leading  thought  as  a  nest  egg  for  more.  Further  light 
came,  and  the  sermon  was  certainly  not  worse  than 
my  more  prepared  effusions.  It  was  better  in  the 
best  sense,  for  one  or  two  came  forward  declaring 
themselves  to  have  been  aroused  and  converted 
through  that  afternoon's  discourse.  I  have  always 
considered  that  it  was  a  happy  circumstance  that  I 
had  forgotten  the  text  from  which  I  had  intended  to 
preach." 


The  Prince  of  Preachers.  103 

His  grandfather  and  he  were  one  in  theology  ;  the 
doctrines  of  grace  were  part  and  parcel  of  his  nature. 
From  first  to  last  it  was  the  same  old  faith  which  he 
preached;  the  ruin  of  man,  and  the  redemption  by 
Christ  Jesus,  applied  by  the  Spirit  oi  God.  These 
truths,  rung  out  with  a  clear  note,  will  always  bless 
mankind  wherever  proclaimed. 

Many  years  ago,  he  was  announced  to  preach  in  a 
country  town,  and  quite  a  lively  time  it  was  that  day 
for  those  Eastern  County  people.  Carriages  and 
gigs,  waggonettes  and  waggons,  carriers'  carts  and 
donkey  traps,  came  trooping  into  the  place  from  miles 
round.  The  chapel  was  crowded  with  people  long 
before  the  time  for  service,  and  the  vestry  was  filled 
with  old  friends  of  the  preacher,  waiting  to  give  him 
a  warm  welcome.  Amongst  them  was  his  venerable 
old  grandfather. 

The  clock  struck  the  hour  for  the  service  ;  the 
chief  deacon  ran  into  the  road  without  his  hat,  and 
rubbing  his  hands,  he  said,  "  Whatever  is  to  be  done  ? 
the  preacher  has  failed  us."  Many  watches  were  con- 
sulted, and,  after  allowing  for  the  variations  in  them 
all,  it  was  concluded  that  the  time  was  past. 

Still  the  preacher  had  not  come. 

After  some  little  delay,  it  was  arranged  to  proceed 
with  the  service,  and  Grandfather  Spurgeon  was  in- 
duced to  take  the  pulpit.  A  look  of  disappointment 
came  over  the  faces  of  the  whole  congregation,  as  he 
informed  them  that,  from  some  cause  or  other,  his 
grandson  had  not  come,  and  that  he  had  been  asked 
to  preach  in  his  stead. 

The  first  song  languished  terribly,  there  was  neither 
time,   tune,   nor   tone   in   it  ;    and   during  tb~   prayer 


104  Tri*2  Essex  Lad. 

many  heads  kept  turning  round  towards  the  door  to 
see  if  the  preacher  had  arrived.  After  the  reading  of 
the  Scriptures,  and  a  second  hymn,  the  grandfather 
announced  his  text,  but  he  had  not  gone  far  into  his 
subject  before  all  faces  were  lighted  up,  and  all  eyes 
beamed  with  delight,  as  the  venerable  old  preacher 
exclaimed  : — 

"  Ha !  here  comes  my  dear  grandson  Charles,  he 
may  preach  the  gospel  better  than  I  can,  but  he  can- 
not preach  a  better  gospel !     Can  you,  Charles  ?  " 

"  No  indeed,  nor  can  I  preach  better  than  you,  so 
pray  go  on.  That  is  what  I  have  been  wishing  the 
train  would  do  for  the  last  three-quarters  of  an  hour." 

"  No,  no  ;  not  now  that  you  have  come,"  said  his 
grandfather,  "you  must  finish  the  sermon.  I  was 
preaching  from  the  words,  '  By  grace  are  ye  saved 
through  faith,  and  that  not  of  yourselves,  it  is  the  gift 
of  God.'  I  have  been  setting  forth  the  source  and 
fountain-head  of  salvation,  'by  grace'  ;  and  I  am  now 
showing  them  the  channel  of  it,  ' through  faith.'" 

Just  as  gracefully  as  a  mill  operative  will  walk  up  to 
a  companion's  loom,  and  take  up  the  two  ends  of  a 
broken  thread,  and,  twisting  them  into  one,  proceed 
to  weave  the  fabric,  Mr.  Spurgeon  took  up  his  grand- 
father's line  of  thought  and,  to  the  joy  of  all  present, 
proceeded  with  the  same  subject. 

After  a  time  Mr.  Spurgeon  said,  "  Now  we  come  to 
the  depravity  of  human  nature,"  and  in  a  moment,  up 
jumped  the  old  grandfather,  and  pushing  up  his 
spectacles  on  to  his  forehead,  he  said  : — 

"  Friends,  I  know  most  about  that,  so  I  will  speak 
on  that  subject,  and  let  Charles  rest  awhile."  He 
rjroceeded  with  all  the  experience  of  years  to  lay  bare 


The  Princt  of  Preachers.  105 

the  natural  heart,  and  having  had  his  say,  he  called 
upon  his  grandson  to  continue. 

This  time  his  grandson  spoke  with  such  fire  and 
fervour,  that  the  poor  old  man  could  not  help  ejacu- 
lating again  and  again,  "  Good  !  Good  !  Good  !  my 
dear  boy  ;  tell  them  that  over  again,  Charles."  The 
grandson  told  them  again  and  again  ;  and  before  he 
had  finished  his  discourse,  there  was  hope  that  some 
of-  those  present  had  received  the  truth  in  the  heart 
It  mattered  not  which  of  the  two  preachers,  on  that 
day,  was  really  the  spiritual  father  of  those  new  born 
souls,  God  got  all  the  glory,  and  now  the  sower  and 
the  reaper  rejoice  together. 

Mr.  Spurgeon's  boldness  in  preaching  was  great, 
but  his  nervousness  was  a  complete  counterpart. 
Sometimes  before  he  went  into  the  pulpit  he  would 
be  quite  sick,  but  directly  he  faced  the  people  all  his 
timidity  was  gone.  His  nervousness  was  like  the 
trembling  of  a  full-blooded  racehorse  before  the  race, 
it  was  only  another  form  of  the  force  which  carried 
him  along. 

As  an  instance  of  this  shrinking  under  some  circum- 
stances, the  following  incident  may  be  here  recorded. 

One  day  he  found  himself  outside  the  Mansion 
House  in  the  City,  and  wished  to  cross  the  road 
to  the  Bank  of  England.  Those  of  you  who  have 
been  in  London,  have  noticed  the  terrible  pressure  of 
traffic  at  this  spot :  so  great  was  it  on  this  particular 
day,  that  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  afraid  to  make  the 
attempt  to  cross.  Just  then  a  blind  man  standing  by, 
touched  him  and  said  : — 

"  Please,  sir,  will  you  take  me  over  the  road  to  the 
Bank  of  England?" 


lo6  The  Essex  Lad. 

"  My  dear  friend,"  he  replied,  "  I  am  afraid  to  cross 
myself." 

"  You  can  see,  can't  you  ?  "  said  the  blind  man. 

"  Yes,  I  can  see,  but  I  am  nervous  because  of  the 
traffic." 

"  Ah,  well ! "  said  the  blind  man,  "  If  you  can  see, 
I  will  trust  you  ; "  and  he  took  hold  of  his  sleeve. 

After  that  last  sentence,  "  I  will  trust  you," 
Mr.  Spurgeon's  nervousness  disappeared,  and  he 
fearlessly  led  the  man  in  safety,  through  the  maze 
of  vehicles,  to  the  other  side.  That  is  just  how  it  was 
in  his  preaching  ;  when  he  saw  the  people  waiting 
to  be  led,  all  fear  for  himself  vanished  in  the  thought 
of  their  need  and  of  their  trust. 

The  following  interesting  circumstance  will  probably 
be  new  to  most  readers  :— - 

In  one  of  the  wards  of  the  Royal  Infirmary,  Edin- 
burgh, a  middle-aged  man,  a  patient  in  that  institution, 
was  one  day  reading  some  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  weekly 
sermons. 

"  Did  you  ever  hear  him  preach  ?  "  asked  a  friend. 

"  Yes,"  he  answered,  in  his  Scotch  dialect,  "  I  heard 
Spurgeon  preach  once  ;  it  was  twenty-six  years  ago, 
but  I  remember  it  as  if  it  were  yesterday." 

"  I  was  living  in  the  far  North  then.  We  had  built 
a  church,  and  it  had  been  just  a  little  bit  too  expensive, 
so  that  we  had  a  big  debt  on  our  hands.  Well,  when 
we  had  got  our  minister,  this  debt  gave  him  a  good 
deal  of  uneasiness. 

"  In  a  little  time  he  had  occasion  to  go  to  London, 
and  while  there  he  took  the  opportunity  of  going  to 
hear  Spurgeon  preach,  and  he  decided  to  go  and  speak 
to  him,  lay  the  need  of  his  church  and  congregation 


The  Prince  of  Preachers.  107 

before  him,  and  ask  him  to  come  up  and  assist  them 
by  giving  them  a  service.  Spurgeon  did  not  see  his 
way  to  doing  that  ;  he  had  no  connection  whatever 
in  that  region. 

" '  However/  he  said,  '  if  ever  I  come  that  way  I  will 
remember  you.' 

"  Eight  years  after  that  Mr.  Spurgeon  had  occasion 
to  visit  the  neighbouring  town  of  Dingwall,  and  our 
minister  got  a  telegram  saying  that  he  was  ready  to 
fulfil  his  long-standing  engagement. 

"  He  came,  and  we  removed  the  narrow  pulpit,  and 
erected  a  platform  for  him  to  preach  from. 

"  Do  you  know  what  his  subject  was  ?  There  was 
a  tame  jackdaw  about  the  place,  and  it  came  and 
perched  on  the  platform  close  to  Mr.  Spurgeon,  who 
motioned  to  the  beadle  not  to  disturb  it,  and  stood 
stroking  its  back  with  his  hand.  His  subject  was 
Faith,  suggested  by  the  confidence  in  him  displayed 
by  the  jackdaw. 

"  Our  debt  was  nearly  wiped  out  that  day,  and 
by  the  following  year  was  completely  disposed  of. 
Mr.  Spurgeon's  presence  brought  in  three  hundred 
and  sixty  pounds." 

This  reminds  me  of  another  story  told  me  by  the 
minister  to  whom  it  occurred.  He  was  very  unsettled 
in  his  pastorate,  and  he  told  Mr.  Spurgeon,  who  was 
preaching  in  his  town,  that  he  meant  to  seek  a  change 
of  sphere.  Mr.  Spurgeon  advised  him  to  remain 
where  he  was,  but  to  no  purpose :  he  was  determined 
to  move.  Going  to  see  him  off  at  the  train,  my  friend 
asked  Mr.  Spurgeon  to  give  him  a  text  to  comfort 
him. 

"As  a  bird  that  wandereth  from  her  nest,  so  is  a 


io8  Tin  Essex  Lad. 

man  that  wandereth  from   his  place,"   was   the   un- 
expected verse  quoted  in  reply. 

"  That's  a  strange  text  to  give  me,"  the  minister  said. 

"  It  is  true,"  answered  Mr.  Spurgeon. 

This  was  on  a  Thursday  morning.  Going  up  to 
London  in  the  train,  Mr.  Spurgeon  composed  a  most 
full  and  suggestive  sermon  on  the  text,  and  that 
evening  he  preached  it  in  the  Tabernacle  ;  and  it  was 
afterwards  published. 

This  readiness  and  resource  often  stood  him  in 
good  stead.  One  Lord's-day  evening,  when  he  opened 
his  Bible  to  preach,  his  eye  lighted  upon  a  text,  and 
it  seemed  so  impressed  upon  his  mind,  that  he  felt  he 
must  preach  from  it,  though  he  had  prepared  a  sermon 
on  an  altogether  different  verse.  He  introduced  the 
subject,  preached  on  the  first  head  and  the  second, 
and  was  just  beginning  to  wonder  what  should  be  his 
third  division.  He  was  rather  perplexed  at  not  seeing 
exactly  what  it  ought  to  be,  and  was  almost  brought  to 
a  dead  stop,  when  much  to  his  relief  the  gas  went  out. 

Thirdly  was  never  given. 

Mr.  Spurgeon,  in  the  darkness,  began  to  talk  about 
the  glory  of  living  in  the  light,  and  the  horror  of 
the  outer  darkness.  Many  people  were  impressed 
while  they  sat  in  the  shadow,  and  listened  to  his 
unpremeditated  words.  Presently  the  gas  was  re- 
lighted, and  the  service  was  brought  to  a  close. 

The  power  of  the  preacher  lay  in  his  clearness  and 
lucidity.  When  in  Guernsey  a  few  years  ago,  he 
preached  to  some  of  the  country  people  who  spoke 
French,  and  were  not  supposed  to  know  English. 
After  the  service  an  old  woman  came  up  to  him,  and 
said, 


The  Prince  of  P readier s.  109 

"  Why,  you  talk  like  a  baby,  you  talk  like  a  baby." 

She  meant  to  say  that  she  had  understood  him, 
although  her  English  was  but  scanty,  and  Mr.  Spurgeon 
looked  upon  her  testimony  as  a  very  true  compliment, 
as  indeed  it  was.  Obscurity  is  altogether  out  of  place 
in  the  pulpit. 

A  little  boy  who  died  in  Baltimore  recently,  touched 
the  heart  of  the  matter.  When  he  was  eight  years 
old,  while  travelling  in  England  he  was  taken  by  his 
father  to  hear  Mr.  Spurgeon.  The  little  fellow  had 
heard  it  said  that  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  the  greatest 
preacher  in  the  world.  On  being  seated  for  the  first 
time  in  the  great  Tabernacle  he  was  all  interest  ;  and 
when  the  preacher  began  the  service,  he  leaned  forward 
with  open  mouth,  and  listened  through  the  entire 
time  with  most  intense  earnestness,  scarcely  moving 
his  eyes  from  the  speaker. 

When  the  service  was  over,  and  they  got  into  the 
street,  his  father  said,  "  Willie,  what  do  you  think  of 
that  man  ? " 

He  stood  still  and  looked  up  into  his  face,  and 
asked,  "  Papa,  is  that  the  greatest  preacher  in  the 
world  ? " 

"  Yes,  I  think  he  is." 

"  Well,  then,"  said  the  boy,  with  a  glow  of  enthusiasm 
in  his  face,  "  I  know  how  to  be  the  greatest  preacher 
in  the  world." 

"  How  ? "  asked  his  father. 

"  Why,  just  pick  out  a  nice  chapter  in  the  .Bible, 
and  tell  just  what  is  in  it  so  that  everybody  can 
understand  you,  and  nothing  more." 

That,  is  what  made  Mr.  Spurgeon  the  prince  of 
preachers. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

$   §rinM   lirlpit. 


S  I  look  up  at  my  study  shelves  I  see 
thirty-eight  large  volumes,  and  many 
smaller  ones,  containing  sermons  by  Mr. 
Spurgeon.  There  are  almost  three  thou- 
sand of  them  printed,  and  enough  still  left  to  enable 
the  publishers  to  continue  the  weekly  issue  of  them 
for  sixteen  years  longer. 

Never,  since  printing  was  invented,  has  any  man 
issued  so  many  discourses.  There  are  texts  from 
every  book  in  the  Bible,  and  almost  from  every 
chapter ;  and  in  directness  of  aim,  and  beauty  and 
simplicity  of  expression,  the  sermons  stand  unrivalled. 
Week  by  week,  for  many  years,  the  sermons  have 
also  appeared  in  an  Australian  newspaper,  and  for 
some  time  the  discourse  on  Lord's-day  morning  was 
regularly  cabled  to  America,  and  appeared  in  a  news- 
paper there  on  Monday  morning.  They  have  also 
been  translated  into  almost  every  language. 

It  was  ever  the  preacher's  object  to  put  the  gospel 
so  that  a  child  could  understand  it.  One  very  grand 
man,  who  did  not  like  his  plain  way  of  speaking, 
once  took  the  trouble  to  write  and  tell  him  he  had 
met  with  some  poor  negroes  who  were  reading  his 
sermons  with  great  delight,  and  for  his  part  he  did 


A   Printed  Pulpit. 


1 1 1 


not  wonder  at  it,  he  said  ;  for,  in  his  wise  opinion,  the 
discourses  were  just  such  as  ignorant  black  people 
would  be  sure  to  relish.  No  doubt  he  thought  Mr. 
Spurgeon  would  have  a  terrible  fit  of  the  blues  after 
that  slap  in  the  face,  but  instead  thereof  he  was  as 
jubilant  as  he  knew  how  to  be,  and  praised  God  with 
his  whole  heart,  because  even  an  enemy  admitted 
that    the    Lord   had    taught    him    how    to    reach   the 


MR.    SPURGEON    AND    HIS   FIRST   LONDON    DEACONS. 

hearts  of  the  poor.  It  is  very  clear  that  what 
ignorant  blacks  can  understand  the  intelligent  whites 
may  understand  if  they  like  ;  and  so  Mr.  Spurgeon 
gathered  that  his  sermons  were  clear  enough  to  be 
understood  by  anybody  who  was  not  so  conceited  as 
to  darken  his  own  mind  with  pride. 

Dr.  Livingstone  read  the  sermons  and  prized  them 


112  The  Essex  Lad. 

highly,  This  illustrious  missionary  and  African  ex- 
plorer carried  some  copies  with  him  into  that  wild 
country,  and  after  his  death  one  of  them  was  found 
in  his  bag.  It  is  marked  by  Livingstone's  own  pen 
in  the  corner,  "  Very  good.  D.  L."  This  sermon 
was  sent  home  to  England  and  given  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon,  who  put  it  safely  amongst  other  treasured 
trophies. 

A  friend  of  mine,  who  is  very  methodical  in  his 
habits,  for  many  years  met  on  Sunday  mornings  a 
venerable  old  Christian  on  his  way  to  his  place  of 
worship. 

The  old  man  used  always  to  strike  his  hand  upon 
his  breast  when  he  met  my  friend,  and  exclaim  as  he 
passed, 

"Good  morning,  I've  got  him  here,  sir!" 

This  greeting  went  on  for  years,  and  my  friend, 
who  was  also  a  friend  of  Mr.  Spurgeon,  and  who 
accompanied  him  on  his  last  drive  at  Menton, 
always  thought  the  old  man  referred  to  Christ,  whom 
he  had  in  his  heart. 

A  short  time  ago,  however,  the  mystery  was  ex- 
plained. It  turned  out  that  the  old  gentleman, 
being  very  deaf,  was  unable  to  hear  a  word  his  pastor 
said,  yet  he  enjoyed  the  assembling  of  himself  with 
the  Lord's  people.  The  hymns  were  always  found  for 
him,  and  the  portions  of  Scripture,  but  when  it  came 
to  the  discourse,  the  old  man  was  accustomed  to 
produce  from  his  breast  pocket,  a  sermon  of  Mr. 
Spurgeon's,  and  read  it  during  the  remainder  of  the 
service. 

That  was  what  he  meant  by  "  I've  got  him  here, 
sir ! " 


CHAPTER   XVII, 

OST  boys  like  fun  and  plenty  of  it,  and 
so  did  Charles  Haddon  Spurgeon.  He 
carried  on  his  shoulders  the  head  of  a 
wise  man,  and  in  his  breast  the  heart  of  a 
little  child.  He  usually  wore  a  soft  wide-awake  hat, 
and  he  always  hated  a  sleepy  heart.  He  was  full  of 
wit  and  humour  from  his  earliest  years  to  his  latest, 
and  it  often  proved  a  power  in  the  pulpit,  and  a 
relief  in  the  midst  of  his  work.  It  added  a  charm 
to  his  conversation,  and  gave  a  spice  to  his  speeches. 

Once  a  very  sober  friend  asked  him  how  he  dared 
to  use  so  much  humour  in  his  sacred  calling-. 

His  quick  reply  was,  "  What  would  you  have  done, 
brother,  if  the  Lord  had  given  you  any  ?" 

His  ready  wit  often  stood  him  in  good  stead,  and 
on  several  occasions  rescued  him  from  an  awkward 
difficulty. 

A  madman  one  day,  having  by  some  means  gained 
admittance  to  the  Tabernacle,  walked  straight  into 
the  vestry  where  Mr.  Spurgeon  sat  all  alone.  Closing 
the  door  behind  him,  he  looked  at  the  pastor  with  a 
wild  glare  in  his  eye,  and  said  : — 

"  I  have  come  to  cut  your  throat." 

"  Have  you  ?  "  said  Spurgeon  quickly.     "  I  wouldn't 


H4  The  Essex  Lad. 

do  that,  if  I  were  you  ;  see  what  a  mess  it  would 
make  on  the  carpet." 

"  I  never  thought  of  that,"  he  answered  ;  and  in- 
stantly became  so  subdued,  that  he  allowed  himself  to 
be  led  from  the  room  like  a  little  child. 

Another  demented  man  once  gained  access  to  him 
in  his  home,  and  was  shown  into  the  drawing-room. 
When  the  two  were  quite  alone,  and  the  door  shut,  he 
said — 

"  Is  your  name  Spurgeon  ?  " 

"  It  is,  sir,"  was  the  short  reply. 

"  Well,  you  are  a  blackguard." 

"Indeed!  I  was  not  aware  of  the  fact,"  said  Mr. 
Spurgeon. 

Becoming  rather  frantic,  and  brandishing  a  thick 
stick,  the  man  said — 

"  I've  come  to  kill  you  ;  you  broke  my  wrists  the 
other  day  at  Victoria  Station,  and  you  ought  to 
die." 

"I  quite  agree  with  you,"  answered  Mr.  Spurgeon  ; 
"  the  man  who  would  do  such  a  thing  deserves  to  die  ; 
but  I  never  saw  you  at  Victoria  Station,  nor  did  I 
ever  break  anybody's  wrist  in  my  life." 

"Your  name  is  Spurgeon,  is  it  not?" 

"  It  is  ;  I  told  you  so  before." 

"  Didn't  you  break  my  wrists  at  Victoria  Station  ?" 

"  Certainly  not." 

"  Have  you  a  brother,  then?" 

"  Yes,  I  have  a  brother." 

"  Perhaps  he  did  it." 

"  I  should  not  at  all  wonder,"  said  Mr.  Spurgeon, 
now  thoroughly  alarmed,  and  anxious  to  get  rid  of 
him  safely.     "  That's  more  like  my  brother  than  me. 


His  Ready    Wit.  1 1  5 

If  I  were  you  1  would  go  and  see  him.     Do  not  go  to- 
day, and  I  will  speak  to  him  about  it." 

"No,"  said  the  poor  fellow,  coming  back  again  to 
his  first  idea,  with  a  fierce  wild  look,  "  I  believe  it  was 
you,  after  all!"  And  he  rose  from  his  seat,  and 
flourishing  his  massive  stick  in  the  air,  he  hissed — 

"  Have  you  ever  been  in  Peckham  Asylum  ? " 

"  I  have  not,"  said  the  preacher,  in  his  deepest  voice. 

"  I  have,"  answered  the  man,  whose  appearance  now 
left  no  doubt  as  to  his  condition  ;  "  and  when  I  was 
there,  it  took  six  men  to  hold  me." 

"Really!" 

"  Are  you  strong  ?  "  he  said,  taking  a  step  towards 
his  intended  victim. 

"  Terrific  !  "  thundered  Mr.  Spurgeon,  springing  to 
his  feet.  Then,  extending  his  arm,  he  said, "  Sit  down, 
sir!" 

The  man  sat  down, 

"  Give  me  that  stick,  sir,  or  I  will  grind  you  to 
powder.  Didn't  I  break  your  wrists  the  other  night  at 
Victoria  Station  ?  " 

Like  a  lamb  the  poor  creature  handed  up  his 
formidable  weapon. 

"  Walk  out  of  that  door,  sir,"  continued  the  victor. 
Out  of  the  door  he  walked,  and  along  the  hall, 
followed  by  Mr.  Spurgeon,  who  was  not  satisfied 
until  he  was  outside  the  house,  and  the  door  locked 
behind  him.  Then,  though  he  had  been  so  bold  at 
the  time  of  need,  a  sudden  faintness  came  over  him 
as  the  tension  of  feeling  was  removed.  But  there 
is  little  doubt  that  he  had  escaped  a  real  danger,  if 
indeed  his  life  had  not  been  saved  by  the  use  of  his 
God-given  ready  wit. 


n6  The  Essex  Lad. 

For  sixteen  years  it  has  been  my  happy  privilege 
without  a  break,  to  spend  the  evening  following  the 
College  Conference,  in  company  with  some  twenty 
ministers  and  students,  at  his  home,  and  to  enjoy 
what  he  called  the  unstringing  of  our  bows  after  the 
labours  of  the  week,  in  order  that  we  might  get  into 
trim  for  the  Sunday  following.  One  of  his  delights 
on  these  occasions  was  to  gather  round  him  in  the 
garden  all  his  guests,  and  to  ask  one  and  another  to 
relate  some  good  story.  Some  of  the  stories  on  these 
occasions  were  very  humorous,  and  no  one  enjoyed 
the  fun  more  than  himself. 

At  one  of  the  gatherings  of  this  kind,  he  said  to 
Mr.  Fullerton  :  — 

"  Now,  Mr.  Fullerton,  tell  us  a  story." 

"  I  don't  know  one,"  was  his  quick  reply. 

"  That's  one,"  said  Mr.  Spurgeon,  immediately. 

Then  turning  to  me,  he  said,  "  I  suppose  Fullerton 
can  make  you  do  just  what  you  like  ! " 

Not  seeing  the  point  at  first,  I  said  : — 

"No,  I  don't  think  so,  and  I  don't  think  Mr. 
Fullerton  is  the  man  to  try  to  do  such  a  thing." 

"  Oh,  yes,"  said  he,  with  a  twinkle  in  his  eye,  "  I 
know  him  well  enough  for  that.  He  can  make  you 
do  just  what  you  like."  And  then  his  playful  humour 
was  seen. 

On  another  occasion  we  were  walking  round  the 
grounds  in  single  file,  because  of  the  wet  grass,  and 
Mr.  Spurgeon  was  leading  the  way.  He  stopped,  and 
called  out  : — 

"  Smith,  strike  up  a  song."  I  started,  "  Hold  the 
Fort,"  but  when  we  came  to  the  second  verse,  he 
called  out  ■ — 


His  Ready    Wit.  117 

"  Stop !  Right  about  turn !  Now  you  can  sing 
1  Satan  leading  on,'  if  you  like." 

This  made  it  rather  hard  for  me,  for  I  was  now 
at  the  head  of  the  column  ;  after  the  laughter  was 
ended,  I  changed  the  hymn,  and  started  something 
else. 

When  Mr.  Spurgeon  met  his  intimate  friends  he 
was  at  his  best.  Into  a  gathering  of  this  kind  there 
once  came  a  fair  gentleman,  with  whom  he  was  very 
familiar. 

"Ah,"  said  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "I  am  always  delighted 
to  see  the  brother  with  the  sandy  hair." 

"  No,  no,"  the  new  comer  expostulated,  "  it  is 
golden." 

"  Yes,  eighteen  carat,"  responded  Mr.  Spurgeon,  like 
a  flash  of  lightning. 

This  has  since  appeared  as  a  prize  joke  in  a  weekly 
paper,  but  it  had  its  origin  as  I  relate  it. 

Another  instance  of  the  same  faculty  of  quick 
response  may  be  given.  Some  years  ago  a  gentle- 
man, named  Mr.  Patridge,  came  to  the  Tabernacle, 
and  was  introduced  to  Mr.  Spurgeon.  The  followino- 
year,  he  attended  the  College  Supper,  and  was  sur- 
prised to  find  that  the  great  preacher  recognized  him 
again. 

"Ah,  Mr.  Partridge,"  he  said,  "I  am  glad  to  see 
you." 

"  Thank  you,  sir,"  said  he,  "  I  am  glad  to  be  here 
once  more,  but  "  he  added  in  rather  a  nervous  tone, 
*  my  name  is  Patridge,  not  Partridge." 

"Ah,  yes,  yes,"  was  the  instant  reply,  "  please  forgive 
me,  I  won't  make  game  of  you  any  more." 

At  which  Mr.  Patridge  heartily  laughed. 


1 1 8  The  Essex  Lad. 

Of  quite  another  character  is  the  following  incident. 
An  old  woman,  some  time  ago,  stopped  Mr.  Spurgeon 
as  he  was  entering  the  Tabernacle,  and  said  : — 

"  Excuse  me,  sir,  but  could  you  give  a  poor  old 
Christian  sixpence  to  help  her  along?  " 

"  What  church  do  you  attend  ?  " 

"  The  parish  church,  sir." 

"  And  do  you  profit  much  there  ?  " 

11  Profit,  sir,"  she  exclaimed,  "  why  for  the  last  six 
months  nobody  in  the  church  has  given  me  anything 
excepting  one  old  flannel  petticoat,  and  that's  worn 
out.  But,  sir,  I  remember  how  I  used  to  be  blessed 
by  your  preaching  forty  years  ago,  when  you  used  to 
preach  in  the  open  air  at  Vernon  Square,  Islington." 

Mr.  Spurgeon,  knowing  he  had  never  preached 
there  in  his  life,  said  to  her  :  "  Wasn't  it  fifty  years  ago 
you  heard  me  preach  there  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir,  so  it  was." 

•'  Let  me  see,"  said  the  preacher,  "  don't  you  think 
it  was  sixty  years  ago  since  you  got  such  a  blessing 
under  my  preaching?" 

"  Dear  me,  sir,  how  the  time  does  fly.  Now  you 
come  to  mention  it,  1  remember  it  was  just  sixty 
years  ago." 

"  I  see  you  are  an  old  hypocrite,"  Mr.  Spurgeon 
said  :  "  I  was  not  born  sixty  years  ago  ;  but  here  is 
sixpence  for  you  to  get  a  night's  lodgings,  and  if  you 
come  begging  in  this  place  again,  somebody  will 
remember  you.     So  be  off." 

A  laughable  incident  is  related  by  my  friend, 
Rev.  John  Robertson,  of  Glasgow.  He  once  told 
Mr.  Spurgeon  about  some  of  the  difficulties  that  he 
had    to   surmount   when    he   commenced    preaching. 


His  Ready    Wit.  119 

For  example,  one  worthy  office-bearer  came  to  church, 
and  seated  himself  before  the  minister  with  one  finger 
in  each  ear. 

"There  was  a  nice  thing  for  a  young  preacher,"  he 
said.     "What  would  you  have  done,  Mr.  Spurgeon  ?  " 

"  I  should  have  prayed "  began  Mr.  Spurgeon. 

"  I  got  my  face  very  solemn,"  said  Mr.  Robertson, 
in  telling  the  incident,  "for  I  expected  something 
very  spiritual." 

"Yes,"  continued  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "I  should  have 
prayed  that  a  fly  might  have  alighted  on  his  nose ! " 

^The  surprise  power  of  true  wit  was  possessed  largely 
by  Mr.  Spurgeon.  Some  years  ago  a  Government 
official  met  him  at  the  Tabernacle  on  a  matter  of 
business.     In  the  course  of  conversation,  he  said  : — 

"  I  have  been  told  that  you  keep  all  your  Institutions 
going  by  prayer." 

"  Practically  that  is  so,"  said  Mr.  Spurgeon. 

"  I  don't  believe  it,"  said  this  grandee  in  a  flippant 
manner. 

"Well,"  replied  the  preacher,  "it  is  quite  true  that 
some  people  send  me  every  year  money  for  my 
various  works,  but  I  have  no  list  of  subscribers,  and 
we  have  no  one  we  could  call  upon  and  say,  'Your 
annual  subscription  has  become  due  !'" 

"  Yes  !  yes  ! "  said  the  questioner  ;  "  good  people 
support  your  Institutions  because  they  believe  in 
you  ;  but  that  is  not  in  answer  to  prayer." 

"  Then  why  do  they  not  send  their  money  to 
somebody  else  ?  "  Mr.  Spurgeon  asked.  "  I  do  not  ask 
them  for  the  money.  I  neither  advertise,  nor  issue 
begging  letters;  I  simply  make  known  my  requests  to 
God,  and  the  money  comes." 


120  The  Esstx  Lad. 

"  Well,"  replied  the  Government  official,  "  I  should 
believe  more  in  your  prayers  if  bad  people  sent  you 
the  money." 

Then  to  change  the  subject,  he  said,  "  I  heard  you 
preach  once,  and  that  was  quite  enough  for  me." 

"Why?'5 

"  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  you  were  the  most 
insolent  fellow  I  ever  heard  in  a  pulpit." 

"  Why  was  that?  "  asked  Mr.  Spurgeon,  quietly. 

"  Well,"  he  said,  "  I  sat  in  the  gallery,  and  you 
pointed  your  finger  right  at  me,  and  said,  *  there  sits 
a  grey-headed  old  sinner.' " 

"  Did  I,"  said  Spurgeon,  "  I  don't  remember  ever 
having  seen  you  in  my  life  before.  But  I  don't  like 
to  be  rude,  nor  to  say  what  is  not  true.  Tell  me — Are 
you  a  grey-headed  old  sinner?  L  you  are  not  one, 
and  I  called  you  one,  I  will  apologize." 

This  method  of  reply  took  the  great  man  by  sur- 
prise, and  he  said,  somewhat  confusedly,  "  Ah  well, 
let  it  pass,  I  believe  you  are  endeavouring  to  do  a 
good  work,  here  is  ten  pounds  ior  you  ;  but  don't  put 
that  down  to  your  prayers." 

"  Thank  you,"  said  Mr.  Spurgeon,  as  he  accepted 
the  money,  "  but  you  have  made  me  more  than  ever 
anxious  to  know  whether  you  are  a  grey-headed  old 
sinner,  or  not.  You  told  me,  just  now,  that  you 
would  believe  more  in  my  prayers  if  bad  people  gave 
me  the  money.     Are  you  a  grey-headed  old  sinner?" 

The  man  who  had  begun  to  object  so  glibly  was 
silent.  Trie-arrow  had  evidently  pierced  between  the 
joints  of  the  harness. 

Another  instance  of  this  unexpected  turning  of  a 
conversation   came   under    my  notice  quite   recently. 


His  Ready    Wit.  121 

A  young  man,  who  had  given  much  trouble,  said,  that 
his  conscience  would  not  let  him  do  a  certain  thing- 
"Ah,"  said  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "you  have  a  very  good 
conscience." 

Surprised,  and  pleased,  the  gentleman  said,  ■'  I  did 
not  think  you  had  such  a  good  opinion  of  me,  sir." 

"Yes,"  said  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "your  conscience  is 
almost  as  good  as  new,  for  you  have  not  used  it 
much." 

It  is  needless  to  say  that  such  a  rebuke  is  not  likely 
soon  to  be  forgotten. 

The  next  incident  I  relate,  was  at  my  own  expense. 
One  evening,  on  entering  the  Tabernacle,  the  Pastor 
called  me  on  to  the  platform,  and  in  the  presence  of 
some  of  his  friends  said, 

"  Mr.  Smith,  I  don't  know  what  you  think  of  your- 
self, but  I  have  a  very  serious  charge  to  lay  against 
you." 

My  face  flushed,  and  I  tried  to  smile. 
"  Ah ! "  said  he,  "  you   need  not  smile,  it  is  a  very 
serious  charge." 

"  Indeed,  sir,"  said  I,  "and  what  is  the  nature  of  the 
charge?"  I  thought  that,  perhaps,  some  evil-disposed 
person  had  been  trying  to  do  some  injury  to  my 
character. 

"  Well,"  said  Mr.  Spurgeon,  "  there  are  two  charges, 
and  I  am  not  quite  sure  which  of  the  two  is  true  ; 
perhaps  you  can  help  me  to  decide.  You  are  either  a 
thief  or  a  conceited  fellow." 

"  Really,  sir,"  I  exclaimed,  "  I  trust  neither  is  true 
concerning  me." 

"Yes,"  said  he,  "  I  am  sorry  to  say  it  is  so,  it  must 
be    so,    and    I    will    prove    it    to    you.      Either    that 


122  Tli c  Essex  Lad. 

trumpet  I  saw  you  blowing  in  the  street  just  now  is 
yours,  or  it  is  not  yours.  Now,  if  it  is  not  yours,  and 
you  have  it,  you  must  be  a  thief ;  and  if  it  is  yours, 
you  must  be  a  fellow  that  blows  his  own  trumpet ; 
and  any  fellow  that  blows  his  own  trumpet  is  con- 
ceited you  know." 

It  was,  indeed,  a  relief  to  me  to  see  through  his  fun, 
and  hear  his  explanation,  which  caused  us  all  to  smile. 

Then,  as  quick  as  thought,  and  for  fear  his  playful- 
ness had  left  any  sting,  he  revealed  his  true  purpose 
in  calling  me  on  to  the  platform  ;  he  said, 

"  I  am  so  glad  to  see  the  Lord  has  converted  your 
trumpet  as  well  as  yourself;  but  it  looks  to  me  a  poor 
tool.     What  is  it  worth  ?  " 

"  About  £2,"  I  replied. 

"  Well,"  said  he,  "  I  will  be  quite  willing  to  pay  ;£*20, 
or  anything  up  to  that  amount,  for  a  cornet  to  be 
used  in  the  Lord's  service.  Please  order  one  to  be 
made,  and  let  the  instrument  be  ready  for  my  birth- 
day and  the  bill  with  it,  and  I  will  give  it  to  you  at 
the  Stockwell  Orphanage  at  the  next  Festival.  Let 
the  following  inscription  be  engraved  upon  it  : — 
*  Presented  to  J.  Manton  Smith  by  C.  H.  Spurgeon, 
June  19,  1877.  With  trumpets  and  sound  of  cornet 
make  a  joyful  noise  before  the  Lord  the  King  (Psalm 

XCV111.  o). 

So,  you  see,  Mr.  Spurgeon's  wit  and  humour  was 
quite  musical  to  me. 


CHAPTER    XVIIL 


djttr.  (grcafltcait 


TANY  beggars  were  in  the  habit  of  calling 
X  upon  Mr.  Spurgeon  ;  they  seemed  to 
Jg  have  discovered  that  he  never  refused 
anyone  unless  he  knew  them  to  be  down- 
right impostors.  Amongst  the  professional  mendicants 
he  was  known  by  the  name  of  "  Soft  Tommy."  A 
friend  once  informed  him  of  this  fact,  but  he  only 
smiled  and  said,  "  Never  mind  ;  I  would  rather  be 
remembered  as  '  Soft  Tommy  '  than  '  Hard  Jack."' 

His  sympathy  with  suffering  was  immense.  Few 
knew  of  his  many  acts  of  kindness  towards  the  tried 
and  afflicted. 

One  day  a  friend  sent  him  tickets  for  Handel's 
Oratorio  at  the  Crystal  Palace,  but  he  refused  them 
because  he  was  too  busy  to  attend  ;  yet  that  very  day 
he  found  tims  to  visit  a  poor  old  man  in  one  of  the 
lowest  parts  of  London,  who  had  been  twenty-six 
years  bed-ridden.  Again  and  again  did  he  call  and 
see  this  poor  afflicted  man,  and  never  without  some 
delicacy  for  the  invalid.  This  sufferer  told  me  he  had 
never  seen  Mr.  Spurgeon  in  his  life  till  he  visited  him 
in  his  affliction  ;  then  his  presence  seemed  like  the  pre- 
sence of  an  angel.  Beyond  myself  and  Mr.  Potier, 
few    people   knew   of  the    great   preacher's    visits    to 


124  "    The  Essex  Lad, 

this  afflicted  creature,  and  this  is  only  a  sample  of 
many  other  cases. 

Mr.  Spurgeon  was  eminently  approachable.  He 
did  not  keep  people  at  arm's  length.  Some  years  ago, 
on  a  cold  winterly  morning,  a  neat-looking  woman 
with  a  little  baby  in  her  arms  sat  crying  on  the 
Tabernacle  steps  when  Mr.  Spurgeon  entered  the 
gates. 

He  enquired  why  she  was  weeping. 

"  Come  with  me  into  the  Tabernacle,  my  good 
woman,"  he  said,  "  and  warm  your  baby  beside  a  nice 
fire." 

"  I  have  been  inside,  sir," she  answered,  "and  I  have 
been  rudely  sent  away.  I  am  almost  broken-hearted 
because  they  won't  let  me  see  Mr.  Spurgeon,  for  I 
have  a  very  special  message  for  him." 

"  Have  you  ? "  said  Mr.  Spurgeon.  "  Then  I  am 
sure  you  shall  see  him.  Come  and  show  me  who 
would  not  let  you  see  him.  I  am  Mr.  Spurgeon,  and 
I  will  listen  to  all  you  have  to  say  to  me.  Don't  fret ; 
bring  the  baby  into  my  vestry,  and  we  will  soon  put 
matters  right  for  you.1' 

The  woman  was  overjoyed  to  find  her  wish  was 
granted,  and  said,  "  Oh,  sir,  never  mind  about  the  rude 
man.  I  am  more  than  repaid  for  all  my  trouble,  now 
that  I  see  you  face  to  face." 

"  Well,  what  do  you  want  to  see  me  about  ?  " 

"  I  am  a  member  of  the  Church  of  England,"  she 
said,  "  and  I  live  some  seventy  miles  from  here.  I 
have  never  seen  you  before,  but  I  have  read  your 
sermons,  and  The  Sword  and  the  Trowel,  and  I  felt  sure 
you  were  a  kind  man.  My  dear  boy  some  years  ago 
commenced  to  save  up  his  money  in  a  box   for  your 


Mr.  Great  Jieart.  123 

Orphanage.  And  just  before  he  died  he  said, '  Mother, 
be  sure  you  go  to  London  with  my  money-box,  and 
see  Mr.  Spurgeon  yourself,  and  tell  him  I  have  saved 
my  money  for  his  Orphanage,'  and,  sir,"  she  said,  "  I 
have  brought  the  box,  to  carry  out  his  wish."  When 
the  contents  of  the  box  were  counted  they  amounted 
to  several  pounds. 

The  good  woman,  who  is  still  alive,  told  me  that 
when  the  servant  repulsed  her  she  was  just  on  the 
point  of  returning  home  with  very  hard  thoughts  of 
Mr.  Spurgeon.  "  After  all,"  she  was  saying  to  herself, 
'•'  he  is  not  a  good,  kind  man."  You  see  she  was 
judging  the  master  by  the  servant  ;  and  I  fear  my 
Master  Jesus  is  often  misjudged  by  the  world  in  the 
same  way  because  of  the  inconsistencies  of  his 
followers.  I  wish  people  would  but  look  at  the  Master 
Himself.  When  the  woman  saw  Mr.  Spurgeon  in- 
stead of  his  subordinate,  she  went  home  with  a  glad 
heart.  She  still  remains  a  devoted  friend  to  his 
Institutions,  and  again  came  to  London  to  pay  her 
last  tribute  of  respect  at  the  funeral  of  the  man  whom 
she  had  first  met  under  these  circumstances. 

Quite  an  opposite  episode  to  this  comes  to  my 
memory.  One  evening  a  stranger  stopped  Mr. 
Spurgeon  on  the  Tabernacle  steps,  and  said  : 

"  Do  you  think  I  could  see  Mr.  Spurgeon  to-night  ?  " 
"  I  know  he  is  very  busy,"  he  replied.     "  What  do 
you  wish  to  see  him  about  ?  " 

"  That's  my  business,"  said  the  man,  "and  I  am  not 
going  to  tell  you.  I  want  to  get  a  private  interview 
with  him.  He  is  a  great  man,  and  I  hear  he  has 
influence  with  the  Queen." 

"  I    know   that's    not   true,"  said  the  unrecognized 


126  The  Essex  Lad. 

pastor  ;  "  lie  is  neither  a  great  man,  nor  has  he  any 
influence  whatever  with  the  Queen  ;  and  unless  you  tell 
me  your  business,  you  must  go  off  about  your  business." 

With  a  hearty  laugh,  Mr.  Spurgeon  afterwards  told 
how  the  man  turned  on  him  furiously,  and  said, 
"  I  wonder  who  you  think  you  are  ?  It's  like  your 
impudence  to  say  he  is  not  a  great  man,  and  that  he 
has  no  influence  with  the  Queen.  I  suppose  you're 
like  the  rest  of  'em  about  the  place,  depending  on 
Mr.  Spurgeon  for  your  bread  and  cheese!" 

With  this  parting  shot  he  stumped  out  of  the  build- 
ing, without  either  stating  his  business,  or  knowing  to 
whom  he  had  been  speaking. 

The  following  incident,  as  far  as  I  am  aware,  has 
never  been  recorded,  but  it  is  well  worthy  of  being 
known  in  honour  of  the  great-heartedness,  kindness,  and 
humility  which  characterized  it.  In  a  quiet  little 
village  in  the  county  in  which  I  was  born,  there 
stands  by  the  road-side  a  small  Baptist  Chapel.  The 
people  are  too  poor  to  support  a  pastor,  and  for  many 
years  the  Sunday  services  have  been  conducted  by 
different  ministers.  A  godly  old  gardener,  who  has 
recently  gone  to  glory,  undertook  to  find  the  preachers, 
and  a  pious  couple,  in  a  cottage,  promised  to  entertain 
them  every  week  from  Saturday  till  Monday.  Their 
cottage  was  small,  and  their  food  plain,  but  the 
warmth  of  their  hearts  and  their  generous  welcome, 
more  than  made  up  for  their  scanty  store.  All  who 
served  the  little  church  felt  well  repaid  by  their 
gratitude  and  love. 

The  old  gardener  took  it  into  his  head  that  he 
would  like  to  get  Mr.  Spurgeon  to  preach  to  them, 
and  wrote  expressing  his  wish. 


Mr.  Great  heart.  127 

Mr.  Spurgeon  sent  a  gently  worded  refusal. 

He  wrote  again. 

Again  he  got  a  refusal. 

He  wrote  a  third  time,  with  the  same  result,  and 
then  he  told  Mr.  Spurgeon  that  he  would  continue 
writing  until  he  came. 

No  notice  was  taken  of  this  letter,  but  at  regular 
intervals  an  application  came  from  the  persistent  old 
man,  until  scores  of  letters  had  been  received  from 
him.  Mr.  Spurgeon,  having  heard  from  other  sources 
of  the  genuineness  of  the  man,  at  length  consented  to 
visit  them  on  a  week-day.  He  was  then  informed  of 
the  old  couple's  constant  hospitality  to  the  preachers, 
and  he  expressed  his  desire  to  be  entertained  by 
them.  However,  when  the  bills  announcing  his 
coming  were  posted,  they  attracted  the  attention  of 
the  village  squire,  who  immediately  wrote  to  Mr. 
Spurgeon,  offering  him  hospitality  for  the  day. 

He  received  a  reply  thanking  him  for  his  kindness, 
and  informing  him  how  the  godly  old  couple  had 
for  years  entertained  the  preachers  week  by  week. 
Mr.  Spurgeon  asked  the  Squire  to  do  him  the  personal 
favour  of  sending  supplies  of  food  into  the  cottage, 
and  joining  him  there  to  dinner  and  tea. 

His  request  was  granted,  and  the  old  folks'  hearts 
were  glad  in  being  permitted  to  entertain  Mr.  Spurgeon 
and  his  friend,  the  Squire,  in  their  humble  abode. 

The  brick  floor  of  the  cottage  was  scrubbed  and 
reddened,  the  wooden  chairs  were  polished,  and  the 
corner  cupboard  was  made  to  shine  almost  like  a 
mirror.  In  the  midst  of  all,  the  old  man  and  his  wife 
sat  at  their  own  table,  dressed  in  their  Sunday  best, 
enjoying   the    feast   which    had    been    supplied,    and 


128  The  Essex  Lad. 

having  as  their  guests,  Mr.  Spurgeon,  the  Squire,  and 
the  godly  old  gardener ;  the  servants  from  the  Hall 
waiting  on  the  happy  party. 

It  was  my  privilege  to  preach  in  the  same  place,  and 
to  share  the  old  people's  hospitality,  some  two  years 
after  this  event.  The  fragrance  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
visit  was  still  fresh  in  the  hearts  of  these  old  folks, 
and  tears  of  joy  trickled  down  their  faces  as  they  gave 
me  a  detailed  account  of  it.  The  corner  cupboard 
was  then  unlocked,  and  a  cup  and  saucer  carefully 
taken  from  the  shelf,  and  placed  before  me  on  the 
table. 

"  There,  sir,"  said  this  good  old  woman,  "  that  is  the 
very  cup  and  saucer  out  of  which  Mr.  Spurgeon  had 
his  tea  ;  it  has  never  been  used  since  ;  but  in  honour 
of  your  visit  to  us,  I  am  going  to  give  you  your  tea  in 
it ;  but  be  sure  you  don't  break  it." 

Since  then  these  two  saints  have  been  called  home. 
Perhaps  they  have  met  their  guests  of  that  day  in 
glory  ere  now,  and  who  can  say  but  they  may  have 
talked  together  about  the  cup  of  tea?  A  cup  of  cold 
water,  given  in  Christ's  name,  commands  a  blessing  ; 
and  their  humble  service,  and  Mr.  Spurgeon's  humble 
spirit,  must  both  have  been  pleasing  to  the  Saviour 
whom  they  all  loved. 


CHAPTER     XIX. 

SCh(  jkhool  of  flw  frojihrfs. 

|F  the  Pastors'  College  I  should  like  to  say 
much  more  than  the  pages  of  this  book 
will  permit  me,  for  some  of  my  happiest 
days  were  spent  within  its  walls. 

It  was  very  dear  to  Mr.  Spurgeon's  heart.  He  not 
only  himself  preached,  but  he  trained  other  men  to 
preach  too,  and  stinted  neither  time  nor  money  in  the 
service.  At  one  stage  of  the  history  of  the  College, 
he  was  on  the  point  of  selling  his  horse  and  carriage 
in  order  to  carry  it  on,  and  often  Mrs.  Spurgeon  has 
by  economies  in  the  home,  provided  the  funds  to  tide 
over  a  hard  pinch. 

In  answer  to  prayer,  this  and  all  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
other  projects  have  been  sustained,  and  now  that  his 
service  on  earth  is  over,  these  works  must  be  still 
carried  on.  Some  of  the  young  people  of  to-day 
should,  in  future  years  come  forward  to  support  the 
various  institutions  which  will  perpetuate  his  memory. 

A  minister  tells  how  one  day  while  he  was  at  the 
College  Prayer  Meeting,  Mr.  Spurgeon  put  his  head 
in  at  the  door  and  said, 

"  Brethren,  pray  for  help,  we  have  no  money  to 
carry  on  the  work." 

They  prayed,  and    in    about  twenty  minutes,   Mr. 


130  The  Essex  Lad. 

Spurgeon    again   appeared,  and  in  triumphant  tones 
he  exclaimed  as  he  held  up  a  cheque, 

"  Help  has  come,  brethren,  a  gentleman  has  just 
called  with  this.     Now  let  us  praise  God  together.'' 

This  is  only  a  sample  of  the  life  of  faith  which 
sustained  and  inspired  his  every  enterprise. 

In  the  evangelistic  work  which,  in  company  with  a 
band  of  brethren,  I  have  been  permitted  to  share,  he 
ever  took  the  deepest  interest,  and  was  always  anxious 
to  have  the  latest  tidings  of  success.  Often  he  gave 
us  words  of  cheer  and  counsel.  I  personally  received 
a  token  of  his  warm-hearted  thoughtfulness,  only  a 
few  days  before  he  passed  away. 

A  certain  newspaper,  in  speaking  of  our  work,  had 
compared  Mr.  Fullerton  and  myself  to  the  piano  and 
banjo,  and  a  copy  of  the  paper  had  reached  Mr. 
Spurgeon,  in  Menton.  With  reference  to  this,  he 
wrote  to  me,  on  the  last  day  of  1891,  a  letter  full  of 
cheerfulness  and  vigour.  Part  of  it  refers  to  business, 
and  part  to  his  own  health,  but  amongst  other  things, 
he  says  : — 

"  Keep  on  with  that  banjo.  Keep  to  the  same  old 
tune.     They  cannot  call  you  "  the  Bones." 

Then,  after  a  few  genial  and  generous  compliments, 
he  continues,  "  I  conceive  that  your  work  is  second  to 
none  in  real  usefulness.  To  the  Lord  be  all  the 
glory !  I  am  very  grateful  for  help  as  to  The  Sword 
and  the  Trowel!' 

Mr.  Spurgeon  was  a  personal  friend  to  his  students. 
He  seemed  to  know  every  man  who  entered  the 
College,  through  and  through.  He  took  the  deepest 
interest  in  each  of  them,  and  forgot  nobody. 

At  this   present  moment,  I  see,  lying  on  my  study 


The  School  of  the  Prophets.  131 

table,  a  iong  letter  of  encouragement  to  a  young 
friend  of  mine  who  lately  left  College  for  the  Mission 
Field.  The  following  extract  will  show  how  he  kept 
in  touch  with  the  brethren  in  their  service  for  Christ. 
The  letter  is  dated  Menton,  December,  189 1,  and  is 
the  more  appropriate  as  it  is  addressed  to  a  farmer's 
son.     Mr.  Spurgeon  says  : — 

"  The  Lord  himself  be  with  you  in  South  Africa. 
Keep  to  the  old  Gospel.  Live  near  to  God.  May 
Christ  live  in  you  !  I  shall  hear  of  you,  I  trust,  if  I 
don't  see  you.  Stick  to  your  work,  Doggett  1  Never 
say  die!  You  have  a  tough  piece  of  ground  to  plough, 
keep  the  share  bright  and  sharp  and  go  straight  as  a 
line  to  the  end  of  the  field  " 

To  give  a  bird's-eye  view  of  the  work  accomplished 
by  the  school  of  the  prophets,  I  cannot  do  better  than 
quote  the  descriptive  words  of  its  Principal,  Gracey  : — 

"  The  company  of  the  preachers  is  vast,  scattered  in 
every  land  and  encircling  the  globe.  At  home,  they 
take  their  stations  from  Wick  to  Redruth,  from 
Norfolk  to  Wales.  They  minister  to  the  largest  con- 
gregations in  the  Metropolis.  They  have  made  their 
own  almost  every  Baptist  pulpit  in  the  Isle  of  Wight, 
and  are  planted  in  Jersey,  Guernsey,  and  the  Isle  of 
Man.  Their  labours  are  giving  new  hope  to  the 
churches  of  Ireland.  They  are  pursuing  missions  in 
Spain,  and  at  Turin  and  Naples.  They  are  among 
the- few  brave  men  who  testify  for  Christ  among  the 
fierce  Mohammedans  of  North  Africa.  The  banks  ol 
the  Congo  hold  the  sacred  dust  of  some,  and  witness 
the  energy  and  devotion  of  others.  The  growing 
kingdom  of  South  Atrica  has  a  Pastors'  College  man 
in  almost  ^very  important  town.     Away  to  the  South, 

6* 


*32 


The  Essex  Lad. 


throughout  New  Zealand  and  Tasmania,  and  from 
Brisbane  to  Western  Australia,  they  have  been  doing, 
and  arc  doing,  good  service  for  the  Saviour.  They 
have  carried  the  gospel  to  the  Falklands,  the  Bahamas, 
and  Jamaica.  Thsy  occupy  pastorates  from  Rio  de 
Janeiro  to  Canada,  and  from  New  England  to  the 
frontier  States  of  the  far  West.  They  have  gone  as 
missionaries  and  pastors  to  India ;  ministered  as 
Christ's  servants  to  the  famine-stricken  peasants  of 
China  ;  and  carried  the  torch  of  saving  truth  to  their 
neighbours  of  Japan. 

"  Their  testimony  thus,  like  the  roll  of  a  British 
drum,  goes  round  the  world,  and  with  a  continuous 
concert  of  prayer — for  a  Prayer  Union  links  all 
together — that  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church  would 
grant  ever-increasing  times  of  refreshing  from  his 
presence.  So  greatly  has  God  owned  and  blessed  the 
Pastors'  College,  that  almost  literally  the  words  are 
true  of  it,  '  The  little  one  has  become  a  thousand.'  " 


. 


THE    PASTORS     COLLEGE- 


CHAPTER     XX. 


§he  Dfaiwjr  of  the  (purtlt. 


GREAT  man  always  has  a  child's  heart. 
Mr.  Spurgeon  was  a  great  man.  Nowhere 
was  this  seen  more  than  in  his  love  and 
care  for  the  children.  He  always  tenderly 
sought  the  welfare  of  the  lambs  of  the  flock. 
Though  he  was  a  Baptist  he  did  not  teach 
adult  baptism  ;  he  enforced  the  baptism  of  believers, 
and  a  boy  has  been  known  to  join  the  Tabernacle 
Church  as  early  as  nine  years  old. 

It  is  quite  in  keeping  with  his  character  that  his  life 
should  be  written  specially  for  young  people,  and 
therefore  I  am  glad  to  accede  to  the  publishers'  re- 
quest and  write  it. 

My  friend,  Mr.  Pearce,  who  is  superintendent  of 
the  Sunday  Schools  connected  with  the  Tabernacle, 
was  often  cheered  by  the  Pastor's  interest  in  that 
department  of  the  work.  What  a  hive  of  bees  these 
schools  seem,  as  seen  on  the  afternoon  of  a  Lord's- 
day !  The  school  is  truly  the  nursery  of  the  church. 
Hundreds  have  been  led  to  know  and  trust  the 
Saviour  by  its  means.  On  special  occasions,  I  have 
had  the  joy  of  addressing  almost  ten  thousand  little 
people  who  can  be  gathered  together  from  the  various 
schools  around  the  Tabernacle. 


*34  The  Essex  Lad. 

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136  The  Essex  Lad. 

Many  years  ago  a  mother  ventured  into  the 
Tabernacle,  to  hear  the  popular  preacher,  and  during 
the  prayer,  the  baby  in  her  arms  began  to  cry  aloud. 
Mr.  Spurgeon  at  once  quelled  the  disturbed  congrega- 
tion and  comforted  the  heart  of  the  troubled  mother, 
by  asking  God's  blessing  to  rest  on  the  child,  whose 
very  cry  was  a  prayer  for  something  that  it  lacked 
language  to  express. 

The  references  he  made  to  this  child,  and  the  many 
lessons  he  drew  from  its  cry  were  very  memorable, 
and  the  mother  never  failed  to  impress  upon  the 
child,  as  it  grew  up  into  life,  that  Mr.  Spurgeon  once 
prayed  specially  for  him  in  the  great  Tabernacle. 
When  the  boy  had  reached  manhood  he  came  to  join 
the  Church,  and  said  that  the  thought  of  the  prayer 
offered  for  him,  when  he  was  a  baby,  had  been  so  im- 
pressed upon  his  life  that  it  had  led  him  to  Christ. 

At  the  College  Conference  in  1889,  Dr.  Usher,  of 
Belfast,  prayed  earnestly  that  the  children  of  the 
ministers  present  might  all  become  the  Lord's.  This 
heart-breathed  prayer  was  taken  up  at  once  by 
Mr.  Spurgeon,  who  asked  for  the  names  and  addresses 
of  every  unconverted  child  whose  father  was  a  member 
of  the  Conference,  in  order  that  he  might  write  to 
them.  In  a  few  weeks  he  had  written  and  posted 
a  letter  to  every  child  whose  name  he  had  received. 

The  two  letters  that  were  sent  are  here  reproduced, 
in  the  hope  that  many  may  solemnly  read  them  as 
a  message  from  the  hand  which  now  is  still. 

The  very  young  children  received  the  letter  on  the 
pages  preceding,  and  those  who  were  older  received 
the  second. 

Two  of  my  own  dear  boys  were  led  into  the  path 


The  Nursery  of  the  Church.  137 

of  peace  by  this  means,  and  I  have  had  other  most 
pleasing  proofs  from  some  of  the  fathers  of  these 
children  as  to  the  value  of  those  epistles.  One  minister 
reports  that  both  his  twin  daughters  were  brought  to 
the  Lord  by  them,  and  another  speaks  of  his  boy 
who  was  led  into  the  light  by  the  agency  of  the 
letter,  and  who  is  just  now,  as  I  write,  about  to  be 
baptized. 

When  my  eldest  son,  George,  was  about  to  make 
profession  of  his  fatth  in  this  way,  Mr.  Spurgeon  said 
to  him,  before  he  went  down  into  the  water — 

"  George,  my  lad,  your  father,  who  is  now  away  in 
Sheffield,  sings  the  Gospel,  why  should  not  you  do 
the  same  ?     Come,  sing  us  a  verse  now." 

I  need  not  tell  you  this  little  fellow,  only  fourteen 
years  old,  was  somewhat  dismayed  at  the  request,  but 
with  God-given  courage  and  guidance,  he  walked  to 
the  front  of  the  platform,  and  sang  : — 

"  I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say, 

'Come  unto  Me  and  rest ; 
Lay  down,  thou  weary  one,  lay  down 

Thy  head  upon  My  breast.' 
I  came  to  Jesus  as  I  was, 

Weary,  and  worn,  and  sad  : 
I  found  in  Him  a  resting-place, 

And  He  has  made  me  glad." 

This  is  the  only  resting-place  for  either  a  child  or 
grown-up  person.  I  hope  you  could  sing  this  verse 
truly. 

Mr.  Spurgeon  sometimes  preached  special  sermons 
to  children.  One  of  these  is  entitled,  "A  Double 
Knock  at  the  Door  of  the  Young,"  and  I  think  you 
would  like  t3  read  it.     It  has  been  blessed  to  many. 


The  Essex  I, ad. 


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The  Nursery  of  tlie  Church.  139 

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CHAPTER  XXL 

(Lite  (irjjhan  gomes. 

^^~3§HIS  record  would  not  be  complete  if  an 
account  of  Mr.  Spurgeon's  Institution  for 
the  Fatherless  was  left  out,  yet  space 
forbids  me  to  say  much  about  it. 

Mr.  Spurgeon's  many  works  grew,  none  of  them 
were  manufactured.  The  Orphanage  is  a  wonderful 
example  of  this..  A  clergyman's  widow,  having  a 
strong  desire  to  help  poor  fatherless  children,  and 
believing  thoroughly  in  Mr.  Spurgeon  as  a  good  and 
a  wise  man,  wrote  to  him,  saying  that  she  would  give 
him  £20,000  as  a  nest  egg,  if  he  would  found  an 
Orphanage  for  Fatherless  boys. 

He  called  on  her,  and  when  he  saw  the  size  of  the 
house  in  which  she  lived  and  the  humble  surroundings 
of  the  place,  he  thought  it  could  not  be  £20,000  that 
she  wished  to  give. 

So  he  said,  "  I  have  called  to  see  you  concerning 
the  £200  you  wrote  me  about." 

"Two  hundred,  Mr.  Spurgeon  !  "  said  the  lady  ;  "did 
I  say  £200  ?  it  is  £20,000  I  want  to  give  to  you." 

."Well,"  he  replied,  "you  certainly  did  say  £20,000, 
but  I  thought  perhaps  you  had  put  a  nought  or  two 
too  many." 

After  receiving  the  £20,000,  Mr.  Spurgeon  resolved 


The  Orphan  Homes.  141 

to  found  the  Orphanage,  and  began  to  pray  for  the 
necessary  direction  and  equipment.  God  heard  his 
prayer  and  blessed  his  efforts  so  greatly,  that,  in  a 
short  time,  there  were  cottage  homes  erected  for  the 
accommodation  of  250  boys,  with  a  large  dining-hall 
and  play-hall.  The  place  was  opened  to  all  de- 
nominations and  no  votes  were  required  to  gain 
admission,  the  greatest  need  always  having  the  first 
claim  for  admission.  The  Orphanage  has  now  grown 
to  such  an  extent,  that  it  is  able  to  shelter,  clothe, 
and  educate  within  its  gates,  250  girls  and  250  boys. 
I  should  like  to  tell  you  so  much  more  about  the 
Orphanage  but  I  have  no  room,  because  I  want  to 
insert  the  following  narrative. 

Mr.  Spurgeon's  last  private  visit  there  was  on 
Tuesday,  September  23rd,  1890.  He  was  very  weak 
and  ill  at  the  time,  and  felt  glad  to  lean  on  the  arm 
of  my  friend,  Mr.  F.  G.  Ladds,  the  Secretary,  who  was 
once  a  little  boy  in  the  Orphanage  himself,  and  who, 
while  yet  a  lad,  trusted  Christ  and  became  a  member 
of  the  Tabernacle  church. 

The  day  was  a  very  wet  and  stormy  one,  and  it  was 
impossible  to  go  all  round  the  grounds. 

"  There  was  nothing  for  it  but  to  turn  into  the  play- 
hall,  where  the  boys  gave  tremendous  cheers  at  our 
advent,"  says  Mr.  Spurgeon  in  recording  the  incident, 
41  cheers  almost  as  deafening  as  the  thunder  which  re- 
sponded to  them.  Go  out  we  could  not,  for  the  shower 
was  swollen  into  a  deluge,  so  I  resolved  to  turn  the 
season  to  account.  I  had  to  disappoint  the  little  girls; 
but  their  turn  will  come  another  day." 

Alas  !  that  "  other  day  "  never  came. 

"A  chair  was  forthcoming,  and  there  I  sat,  the  centre 


142 


The  Essex  Lad. 


of  a  dense  throng  of  juvenile  humanity,  which  could 
scarcely  be  kept  off  from  a  nearness  which  showed  the 
warmth  of  their  reception  of  their  friend.  Our  artist, 
who,  standing  in  the  throng,  made  a  hurried  sketch, 
could  not  be  afforded  space  enough  to  put  in  the 
hundreds  of  boys.    It  was  certainly  a  melting  moment 


as  to  heat,  and  fresh  air  was  not  abundant ;  but  any- 
thing was  better  than  the  storm  outside. 

"  Flash  after  flash  made  everybody  feel. sober,  and 
prompted  me  to  talk  with  the  boys  about  that  freedom 
from  fear  which  comes  through  faith  in  the  Lord  Jesus. 


TJie  Orphan  Homes.  143 

The  story  was  told  of  a  very  young  believer,  who  was 
in  his  uncle's  house  one  night  during  a  tremendous 
tempest.  The  older  folk  were  all  afraid  ;  but  he  had 
really  trusted  himself  with  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  he  did 
not  dare  to  fear.  The  baby  was  upstairs,  and  nobody 
was  brave  enough  to  fetch  it  down  because  of  a  big 
window  on  the  stairs.  This  lad  went  up  to  the  bed- 
room, and  fetched  the  baby  to  its  mother,  and  then 
read  a  psalm,  and  prayed  with  his  relatives,  who  were 
trembling  with  fear.  There  was  real  danger  for  a 
stack  was  set  on  fire  a  short  distance  away  :  but  the 
youth  was  as  calm  as  on  a  summer's  day  of  sunshine, 
not  because  he  was  naturally  brave,  but  because  he 
truly  trusted  in  the  Lord." 

I  daresay  you  will  guess  who  this  young  believer 
was  !  though  Mr.  Spurgeon  was  too  modest  to  say 
But  he  continues  the  narrative. 

"While  I  was  thus  speaking,  the  darkness  increased, 
and  the  storm  overhead  seemed  brooding  over  us  with 
black  wings.  It  was  growing  dark  before  its  hour. 
Most  appropriately,  one  of  the  boys  suggested  a  verse, 
which  all  sang  sweetly  and  reverently — 

'  Abide  with  me  !  fast  falls  the  eventide  ; 
The  darkness  thickens  ;   Lord,  with  me  abide ; 
When  other  helpers  fail,  and  comforts  flee, 
Help  of  the  helpless,  O  abide  with  me  ! ' 

This  ended,  there  followed  a  word  about  the  ground 
of  the  believer's  trust  :  he  was  forgiven,  and  therefore 
dreaded  no  condemnation  ;  he  was  in  his  heavenly 
Father's  hand,  and  therefore  feared  no  evil.  If  we 
were  quarrelling  with  God,  and  had  all  our  sins  rest- 
ing upon  our  guilty  heads,  we  might  be  afraid  to  die  ; 
yes,  and  ever  afraid  to  live  ;  but  when  reconciled  by 


144  The  Essex  Lad. 

the  death  of  His  Son,  we  said  farewell  to  fear.  With 
God  against  us  we  are  in  a  state  of  war  ;  but  with 
God  for  us  we  dwell  in  perfect  peace.  Here  came 
flashes  of  lightning  and  peals  of  thunder  which  might 
well  make  us  start ;  but  no  one  was  afraid.  It  is  true 
we  all  felt  awed,  but  we  were  restful,  and  somehow 
there  was  a  quiet  but  general  cry  for  'perfect  peace! 
On  inquiring  what  this  meant,  I  was  answered  by  all 
the  boys  singing  right  joyfully — 

'  Like  a  river  glorious  is  God's  perfect  peace, 
Over  all  victorious  in  its  bright  increase, 
Perfect,  yet  it  flovveth  fuller  every  day  ; 
Perfect,  yet  it  groweth  deeper  all  the  way. 
Stayed  upon  Jehovah,  hearts  are  fully  blest, 
Finding  as  he  promised,  perfect  peace  and  rest.' 

This  sung,  we  covered  our  faces  reverently,  and  the 
boys  were  very  silent,  while  I  lifted  up  my  voice  in 
prayer.  Then  we  opened  our  eyes  again,  and  it  was 
very  dark,  as  if  night  had  come  before  its  time.  While 
the  flames  of  fire  leaped  in  through  the  windows  and 
skylights,  the  noise  of  the  rain  upon  the  roof  and  the 
tremendous  thunder  scarcely  permitted  me  to  say 
much  upon  Jesus  as  being  our  peace,  through  His 
bearing  our  sins  in  His  own  body  on  the  tree.  Yet, 
as  well  as  I  could,  I  set  forth  the  cross  of  Christ  as 
the  place  of  peace-making,  peace-speaking,  and  peace- 
finding,  both  for  boys  and  men  ;  and  then  we  all  sang, 
to  the  accompaniment  of  the  storm-music — 

1  How  sweet  the  name  of  Jesus  sounds 
In  a  believer's  ear  ! 
It  soothes  his  sorrows,  heals  his  wounds, 
And  drives  away  his  fear.' 

Never  did  th-  power  of  that  Name  to  drive  away  fear 


The  Orphati  Homes.  145 

appear  more  sweetly.  To  me  the  words  came  with  a 
soothing,  cheering  power,  which  filled  me  with  intense 
delight,  and  so  we  very  joyfully  and  peacefully  sang 
the  third  verse — 

'  Dear  Name  !  the  rock  on  which  I  build, 
My  shield  and  hiding-place  ; 
My  never-failing  treasury,  filled 
With  boundless  stores  of  grace.' 

Just  as  we  came  to  '  my  shield  and  hiding-place,' 
there  was  a  peculiarly  blue  flash,  with  a  sort  of  rifle- 
crack,  as  if  something  very  close  to  us  had  been  struck. 
The  boys  looked  at  one  another,  but  went  on,  with 
subdued  tones,  singing  of  the  '  boundless  stores  of 
grace.'  Teachers  and  others  were  mixed  with  the 
little  army  of  boys,  but  we  were  all  welded  together 
in  common  emotion.  I  then  reminded  them  that  to 
such  a  Protector  we  must  give  our  heart's  love.  It  was 
a  duty  to  love  one  so  good  as  the  Lord  Jesus,  but 
even  more  a  delight  to  do  so,  since  He  gave  Himself 
for  us,  and,  by  bearing  our  punishment,  delivered  us 
from  all  harm.     As  if  by  instinct,  some  one  led  off — 

'  My  Jesus,  I  love  Thee,  I  know  Thou  art  mine, 
For  Thee  all  the  follies  of  sin  I  resign  ; 
My  gracious  Redeemer,  my  Saviour  art  Thou, 
If  ever  I  loved  Thee,  my  Jesus,  'tis  now.' 

Here  was  a  good  opportunity  to  press  home  the 
question,  Is  this  true  of  each  one  of  you  ?  The 
great  desire  of  all  who  conduct  the  Orphanage  is  to 
lead  you  to  take  Jesus  for  your  gracious  Redeemer, 
that  so  you  may  love  Him.  Oh,  that  you  loved  Him 
now  !  It  may  be  that,  if  you  leave  us  unsaved,  the 
Lord  will  yet  bring  you  in  ;  but  it  would  be  far  better 


146 


The  Essex  Lad. 


that  you  should  go  out  from  us  ready  for  the  battle  of 
life,  and  covered  with  a  holy  armour,  so  that  you  may 
not  be  wounded  by  the  arrows  of  sin.  Then  I  picked 
out  Mr.  May,  who  is  employed  at  the  Orphanage,  and 
bade  him  tell  the  boys  about  himself.  May  was  a 
boy  with  us  at  the  Orphanage — a  restless  spirit,  and 
so  he  went  to  sea,  and,  after  many  hardships  and 
adventures,  he  was  converted  to  God   at  Malta,  and 


THE   SPURGEONS'    ORPHANAGE    GATE. 

then  came  back  to  us,  and  we  found  him  a  post  at 
his  old  school.  As  the  lads  knew  the  most  of  his 
story,  May  did  not  say  very  much  ;  and  what  he  did 
say  was  rather  overborne  by  the  rain  on  the  roof, 
which  sounded  like  ten  thousand  drums.  The  thunder 
added  its  trumpet  voice,  and  only  allowed  us  pauses 
of  silence.      I  went  on  with  the  talk  till  there  came  a 


The  Orphan  Homes.  147 

burst  of  thunder  loud  and  long.  I  stopped,  and  bade 
the  children  listen  to  the  voice  of  the  Lord.  We 
all  hearkened  to  it  with  awe  and  wonder.  Then  I 
reminded  them  of  Psalm  xxix  :  '  The  voice  of  the 
Lord  is  powerful  ;  the  voice  of  the  Lord  is  full  of 
majesty.  The  voice  of  the  Lord  breaketh  the  cedars  ; 
yea,  the  Lord  breaketh  the  cedars  of  Lebanon.  The 
Lord  sitteth  upon  the  flood  ;  yea,  the  Lord  sitteth 
King  for  ever.'  I  told  them  how  often  I  had  sung  to 
to  myself  Dr.  Watts'  verses — 

'  The  God  that  rules  on  high, 
And  thunders  when  He  please, 
That  rides  upon  the  stormy  sky, 
And  manages  the  seas  : 

'  This  awful  God  is  ours, 
Our  Father  and  our  love  ; 
He  shall  send  down  His  heavenly  powers 
To  carry  us  above. 

*  There  shall  we  see  His  face, 
And  never,  never  sin  ; 
There  from  the  rivers  of  His  grace, 
Drink  endless  pleasures  in.' 

As  they  did  not  know  the  old-fashioned  tune  '  Falcon 
Street,'  to  which  I  had  been  wont  to  sing  the  words, 
we  kept  quiet  till,  suddenly,  there  came  another  roll 
of  drums  in  the  march  of  the  God  of  armies  ;  and 
then,  as  an  act  of  worship,  we  adoringly  sang  together, 
with  full  force,  the  words  of  the  doxology — 

'  Praise  God,  from  whom  all  blessings  flow, 
Praise  him  all  creatures  here  below, 
Praise  him  above,  ye  heavenly  host, 
Praise  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost/ 


148 


The  Essex  Lad. 


"  This  was  a  grand  climax.  The  heavens  themselves 
seemed  to  think  so,  for  there  were  no  more  thunder- 
claps of  such  tremendous  force.  I  need  not  write 
more.  The  storm  abated.  I  hurried  off  to  see  en- 
quirers at  the  Tabernacle,  but  not  till  one  and  another 
had  said  to  me,  'The  boys  will  never  forget  this.  It 
will  abide  with  them  throughout  eternity.'  So  BE 
it,  for  Christ's  sake     Amen." 


ft  cU&^    fj  uj  'h*;:  ;• 


Mr.  Spurgeon  was  a  true  friend  to  all  the  orphans. 
When  he  was  at  Menton,  one  of  the  boys  and  one  of 
the  girls  wrote  to  him  on  behalf  of  the  others,  wishing 
him  a  happy  Christmas,  on  what  proved  to  be  the  last 
Christmas  day  he  spent  on  earth.  In  reply  they  had 
each  a  card,  tenderly  and  beautifully  written.  A 
fac-simile  of  each  is  given  in  the  hope  that  many  of 
the  girls  and  boys  who  read  this  book  may  learn  to 
trust  Him  who  cares  for  the  birds,  and  begin  to  fight 


The   Orphan  Homes. 


149 


His  battles  all  through  their  lives.  Then,  whether 
orphans  or  not,  they  may  rejoice  in  knowing  that 
thev  are  children  of  the  Father  in  heaven. 


CKWCl^ 


/has]    fh-   <£rLO<;  J^-x^,  ^^vx//^?_ 
/^     A^r-c^j     S-^cCc*^c     <^KJtjOM^.    Vat*-*. 


^9 


Each  year,  at  the  Orphanage,  there  is  a  Founders' 
Day  and  Festival,  which  is  arranged  to  come  as  near 
Mr.  Spurgeon's  birthday,  June  19th,  as  possible. 
Thousands  of  friends  gather  on  these  occasions,  and 
anyone  who  wishes  both  to  see  the  Orphan  Homes, 
and  to  hear  about  them,  cannot  do  better  than  be 
present  at  this  annual  feie. 


MRS.    C.    H.    SPUKGEON. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

pfltopk  fane  and  gods*  lilt 


JANUARY  is  a  marked  month  in  the  life 
of  C.  H.  Spurgeon.  In  January  he  entered 
upon  the  new  life  :  in  January  he  entered 
upon  the  glorified  life  :  and  in  January 
he  entered  upon  home  life.  On  January  8th,  1856,  in 
the  presence  of  two  thousand  people,  Mrs.  C.  H. 
Spurgeon  linked  her  life  with  his. 

Two  houses  in  London  will  be  long  pointed  out 
as  having  been  occupied  by  "  England's  Greatest 
Preacher."  One  is  in  Nightingale  Lane,  Clapham, 
and  though  the  sweet  songsters  of  the  night  have  long 
since  departed  from  it,  the  man  of  God,  who  for  years 
lived  there,  often  caused  weary  hearts  to  sing  for  joy. 
Twelve  years  ago  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Spurgeon  removed  to 
Norwood,  and  at  "  Westwood,"  on  Beulah  Hill,  the 
same  quiet  but  busy  life  was  Jived  as  in  the  presence 
of  God.  The  home  indeed  was  like  a  bit  of  the 
land  of  Beulah  of  which  John  Bunyan  speaks  in  his 
Pilgriuis  Progress. 

Mr.  Spurgeon's  home  life  was  most  beautiful.  His 
tastes  were  simple  and  unaffected,  and  there  were  none 
of  the  airs  of  a  great  man  about  him.  Perfect  order 
reigned  everywhere,  and  when  anyone  entered  the 
home,  a    feeling   of   restfulness    pervaded    the   heart 


152  The  Essex  Lad. 

at  once.  There  was  no  extravagance,  but  everything 
was  in  perfect  taste.  The  gardens  and  grounds  were 
ever  the  delight  of  the  great  preacher,  and  he  was  per- 
fectly happy  when  he  was  conducting  some  honoured 
guest  round  his  domain.  With  delight  he  would 
point  out  the  beauties  of  flower  and  fern,  and  describe 
the  features  of  the  scenery,  of  which  a  wide  expanse 
could  be  seen  from  his  favoured  position  on  the  top 
of  the  hill. 

The  cows  in  the  meadow  were  an  ornament  to  the 
place.  These  were  consecrated  to  the  Lord's  service, 
and  the  proceeds  from  the  sale  of  the  milk  was 
devoted  by  Mrs.  Spurgeon  to  the  support  of  a  Bible- 
woman  and  a  nurse.  "Punch,"  Mr.  Spurgeon's  pug 
dog,  was  always  a  great  source  of  amusement ;  many 
a  hearty  laugh  I  have  heard  his  master  give,  when 
the  dog  gave  a  special  performance  of  his  tricks  for 
the  benefit  of  visitors. 

Twin  sons  were  born  in  the  home,  and  both  are 
now  preachers  of  the  Gospel,  and  are  workmen  who 
need  not  to  be  ashamed.  This  fact  was  a  great  joy 
to  their  father's  heart ;  and  though  he  did  not  believe 
grace  ran  in  the  blood,  he  rejoiced  that  the  godly  line 
of  ministers  was  to  be  sustained  in  his  family  when 
he  was  gone.  When  the  twins  were  boys  they  were 
photographed  each  year,  and  in  the  entrance  hall, 
at  "  Westwood,"  a  large  frame  contains  these  pictures, 
showing  the  gradual  development  from  boyhood  to 
manhood.  Mr.  Spurgeon  sometimes  used  this  as  an 
illustration  of  the  progress  which  should  be  seen  in 
the  life  and  character  of  those  who  are  born  into  the 
family  of  God. 

For  very  many  years  Mrs.  Spurgeon  was  an  invalid, 


Nightingale  Lane  and  Beulah  Hill.  153 

and  as  her  dear  husband,  himself  a  great  sufferer,  said, 
"  There  is  no  blessing  more  to  be  desired  of  the  Lord 
than  health,  except  it  be  sickness."  In  the  sick- 
chamber  Mrs.  Spurgeon  has  learned  to  delight  herself 
in  the  Lord  ;  and  the  gentleness  and  fragrance  which 
come  from  such  discipline  are  prominent  in  her  life. 
In  later  years  she  has  been  somewhat  stronger,  and 
I  have  heard  her  say  that  she  has  taken  up  her  abode 
in  "  Thanksgiving  Corner.*'  Her  whole  life  is  full  of 
praise. 

"  The  Book  Fund,"  which  she  inaugurated,  is  known 
all  over  the  world.  Many  a  minister  of  the  Gospel 
has  been  cheered  by  its  means  with  a  gift  of  books  ; 
the  yearly  reports,  and  the  volume  which  includes 
many  of  them,  Ten  Years  of  my  Life  in  the  Service 
of  the  Book  Fund,  are  full  of  beauty  and  grace. 

I  cannot  do  better  than  let  the  two  dear  sons  them- 
selves speak  of  their  father  and  his  home.  Pastor 
Charles  Spurgeon,  who  is  the  minister  of  a  large 
church  at  Greenwich,  in  speaking  at  the  College 
Conference,  bore  a  noble  testimony  to  his  glorified 
father. 

"  Most  of  my  home  training  I  owe,"  he  said,  "  to 
my  beloved  mother.  Father  was  thereby  set  free  the 
more  for  his  sacred  calling,  but  nevertheless  that  very 
fact  has  had  a  wonderful  influence  over  me.  His 
active  life  always  impressed  me  much,  even  in  my 
youngest  days. 

"  He  was  the  truest  and  the  kindest  father  as  regards 
the  correction  of  his  children.  If  every  parent  acted 
as  he  did,  probably  there  would  be  better  boys  about. 
The  first  recollection  I  have  of  him  was  on  one 
occasion    when,  returning   from    the    Continent  with 


154 


The  Essex  Lad. 


mother,  the  two  boys  having  been  left  at  home  in 
charge  of  the  cook,  as  a  very  great  treat  we  sat  up  ro 
welcome  them. 

"  During  their  absence,  one  of  the  two  boys,  on  a 
certain  Sunday  afternoon,  when  a  very  limited  portion 
of  dessert  had  been  allowed,  thought  he  would  like  a 
little  more,  and  so  he  helped  himself.  You  can 
imagine  who  it  was.  I  need  not  say  it  was  not  my 
brother.     I  was  found  out  in  that  petty  larceny,  and 


MR.    SPURGEON  S    SON    CHARLES. 


was  punished  accordingly  by  the  cook.  I  suffered 
greatly  at  her  hands  ;  but,  having  most  truly  repented, 
I  received  from  her  a  promise  that,  upon  the  return 
of  my  parents,  my  offence  should  not  be  mentioned. 
I  was  grieved  ;  my  heart  was  broken  that  I  had  done 
it,  as  much  because  I  feared  lest  I  should  grieve  my 
parents  as  it  was  that  I  had  stolen  some  nuts 

"  When  they  returned,  however,  the  first  question 
asked  was, 


Nightingale  Lane  and  BenlaJi  Hill.  155 

"'Well,  Ellen,  and  how  are  the  boys  ?  Have  they 
been  good  ? ' 

"  '  Yes,  sir/  she  said,  but  with  a  little  bit  of  doubt 
about  it. 

"  They  knew  very  well  what  it  meant ;  for  they  said 
directly, 

"  '  Has  not  Charlie  been  good  ?  ' 

"  The  question  was  answered,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  in 
the  negative,  and  the  whole  story  of  taking  some  half 
a  dozen  nuts  out  of  the  sideboard  cupboard  was  told, 
and  Charlie  was  sent  to  bed  with  these  words, 

"  *  I  will  come  up  and  see  you  presently.' 

"  That  was  all.  That  was  quite  enough,  and  I  went 
upstairs  with  a  very  heavy  heart ;  and  yet,  because  it 
was  my  father,  I  did  not  fear  him.  When  he  came  in 
at  the  door,  I  was  already  in  bed.  It  was  somewhat 
late  for  my  childhood  days — about  half-past  nine. 

"  He  entered  and  said,  '  I  find  that  you  have  already 
.  been  punished  for  what  you  did  wrong,  so  go  to  sleep/ 
and  he  gave  me  a  kiss,  and  went  downstairs. 

"  That  was  his  trait  all  through  his  life  ;  he  was 
most  just,  and  true,  and  upright ;  and  if  he  thought 
that  any  injury  had  been  done  to  anyone,  or  that  he 
had  made  a  mistake  concerning  any,  he  would  go  out 
of  his  way  to  put  it  right,  and  spend  any  amount  of 
money  to  do  it.  And  I  could  back  these  words  up 
with  facts. 

"  A  little  further  on,  in  my  life's  history,  I  was  at 
school  at  Brighton.  I  went  there  for  several  reasons. 
I  believe  that  the  first  was  to  learn,  but  the  second 
was  to  play,  and  I  preferred  the  second  to  the  first ; 
and  sometimes  the  lessons  were  not  altogether  well 
prepared.      I    had  a   letter  from   my   father,  for   the 


156  The  Essex  Lad. 

master  had  written  complaining  of  me,  and  father 
said, 

"  'Charlie,  I  shall  have  to  tell  the  master  to  cane  you, 
if  you  are  able!  " 

"  Well,  that  dose  of  physic  went  down  all  the 
sweeter  because  there  was  a  drop  of  honey  in  it,  and 
I  believe  that  I  was  a  better  boy,  and  stuck  to  my 
books  the  more  because  of  the  way  in  which  he  put  it. 
It  made  me  more  capable,  because  I  was  afraid  of 
being  caned.    So  my  father  was  kind  in  his  corrections." 

When  the  son  sent  a  letter  from  school  speaking 
of  a  prayer  meeting  that  he  had  started  in  the  master's 
drawing  room,  he  received  this  beautiful  little  note. 
His  father  said  : — 

"  Dear  boy,  I  should  like  you  to  preach,  but  it  is 
best  that  you  pray.  Many  a  preacher  has  proved  a 
castaway,  but  never  one  who  has  truly  learned  to 
pray." 

When  son  Charles  desired  to  give  himself  wholly 
to  the  Lord's  work,  he  received  another  letter  from 
his  father,  which  I  commend  to  all  the  young  men 
whose  eye  this  page  may  catch.  It  contains  the 
highest  wisdom,  and  if  followed  out  will  make  any 
life  happy.  Mr.  Spurgeon  wrote  :  "  I  am  glad  you 
desire  to  do  something  for  the  Lord,  and  shall  be  still 
more  so  when  you  actually  set  about  it.  Time  flies, 
and  the  opportunity  for  doing  good  flies  with  it. 
However  diligent  you  may  be  in  the  future,  you  can 
only  do  the  work  of  1875  in  1875  ;  and  if  you  leave  it 
undone  now,  it  will  be  undone  to  all  eternity. 

"  The  diligent  attention  which  you  give  to  business, 
the  careful  purity  of  your  daily  life,  and  your  concern 
to  do  common  things  in  a  right  spirit,  are  all  a  real 


NigJitingale  Lane  and  BeulaJi  Hill.  157 

service  to  the  Lord.  The  hours  in  which  your  earthly 
calling  is  industriously  followed  for  Christ's  sake,  are 
real  hours  of  work  for  Jesus  ;  but  still  this  cannot 
satisfy  you,  or,  at  least,  I  hope  it  cannot. 

"  As  redeemed  by  the  precious  blood  of  Jesus,  you 
feel  that  you  belong-  to  Him,  and  you  long  to  show 
your  love  to  Him  by  actions  directly  meant  to  extend 
His  kingdom,  and  gather  in  souls  whom  He  loves  to 
bless.  When  once  such  efforts  are  commenced  they 
become  easier,  and  a  kind  of  hunger  to  do  more  seizes 
upon  the  heart. 

"  It  is  not  toil,  but  pleasure  ;  and  if  God  blesses 
what  we  do,  it  rises  from  being  a  common  pleasure 
to  become  a  sacred  delight.  '  Whatsoever  your  hand 
findeth  to  do,  do  it  with  your  might.'  It  is  not  for 
me  to  suggest  what,  for  the  act  of  invention  must  be 
left  to  yourself,  and  half  the  pleasure  lies  in  it." 

"  With  such  words  as  those,"  says  his  son,  in  reading 
this  letter,  "  I  can  assure  you  it  was  not  long  before  I 
decided  to  go  and  take  up  work  for  Jesus  Christ, 
feeling  also  sure  that  he  that  had  written  thus  would 
pray  even  more  earnestly  than  before  that  the  humble 
worker  might  be  richly  blessed." 

Mr.  Spurgeon  was  a  very  busy  man.  Not  a 
moment  of  his  life  was  wasted.  Once  when  the  son 
had  begun  to  ride  a  bicycle,  his  father  asked  him  : 

"  However  do  you  manage  to  keep  on,  my  boy  ?  " 

"  Well,  if  I  do  not  go  on,  father,  I  go  off,"  he 
answered. 

"  That  is  about  the  same  with  me,"  he  said  ;  "  I 
must  keep  at  it,  else  I  should  stop." 

And  until  the  very  end  he  "  kept  at  it,"  spending  his 
strength  to  the  last  ounce  in  the  service  of  his  Master. 


158  The  Essex  Lad. 

When  he  unbent  in  the  midst  of  his  friends  or 
family,  or  when  out  on  a  holiday,  he  was  at  his  best. 
Fun  and  frolic  would  follow  as  from  the  heart  of  a 
child  ;  "  But,"  his  son  says,  "  even  in  the  midst  of  this 
fun  there  was  some  amount  of  instruction  conveyed. 
He  would  sometimes  say : 

" '  Now,  boys,  let  us  see  what  we  can  say  about 
these  trees  ; '  and  then  we  would  try  to  make  some 
riddles  up,  and  he  would  make  riddles  about  all 
manner  of  things.  Then  he  would  turn  and  try  to 
make  us  remember  all  the  different  stones  and  rocks, 
and  so  forth.  And  if  we  were  going  through  old 
ruins  of  castles,  abbeys,  and  the  like,  he  would  tell  us 
about  them,  for  he  seemed  to  know  everything.  He 
was  a  walking  encyclopaedia. 

"  When  we  went  through  the  churches  in  Paris,  he 
seemed  to  know  every  picture,  every  tomb.  When- 
ever we  spent  these  happy  holidays,  I  preferred  it  to 
going  to  school,  and  I  wished  that  he  had  always  been 
my  tutor  ;  for  I  believe  that  I  should  have  learned  a 
great  deal  more  from  him  than  from  anybody  else. 
I  do  thank  God  for  having  had  such  a  father,  so  full 
of  information,  and  so  gracious  in  imparting  it." 

On  one  occasion  in  Scotland  the  father  and  sons 
were  guessing  about  trees,  and  saying  which  they 
liked  best.  When  son  Tom's  turn  came,  he  went  up 
to  Mr.  Spurgeon,  and  said  : 

"  Yew,  father." 

His  father  never  forgot  that  tender  touch  which 
conveyed  a  world  of  'ove. 

Pastor  Thomas  Spurgeon  for  his  health's  sake  has 
been  compelled  to  make  his  home  in  a  warmer 
climate.     Both  in  Australia  and  in  New  Zealand  his 


NigJitingale  Lane  and  BenlaJi  Hill.  159 

name  is  a  household  word.  His  preaching  has  been 
so  acceptable  that,  with  God's  blessing,  he  has 
been  enabled  to  build  a  magnificent  Tabernacle  in 
Auckland. 

When  the  news  of  his  father's  death  was  cabled  to 
New  Zealand  (the  beautiful  message  to  the  son  was, 
"  Father  in  heaven,  mother  resigned,")  a  Memorial 
Service  was  convened  in  the  Tabernacle,  which  he 
had  been  the  means  of  erecting,  and  on  that  solemn 
occasion  he  gave  the  following  testimony : — 


MR.   SPURGEON'S    SON   THOMAS. 


"The  man  who  was  so  good  to  other  people's 
children  was,  you  may  be  sure,  a  good  father  to  his 
own.  So  busy  a  life  prevented  him  from  taking  an 
active  part  in  the  upbringing  of  his  boys — besides,  my 
precious  mother  was  the  best  possible  trainer.  We 
learned  from  father's  example  rather  than  by  his 
precept.  And  if  his  home  life  might  be  told  it  would 
prove  as  striking  as  his   public   life.     I  fear  me  we 


160  The  Essex  Lad* 

have  not  profited  by  it  as  we  should,  but  it  was  bound 
to  tell. 

"There,  'at  home,  sweet  home,'  we  marked  his 
generosity — so  unstinted  that  scarce  anyone  appealed 
in  vain — unless,  indeed,  he  himself,  just  then,  was  as 
poor  as  the  applicant,  by  reason  of  his  constant 
giving.  There  we  saw  the  daily,  hourly  piety,  so 
natural  and  unconstrained — the  trustful  confidence 
in  God — the  humility  which  ever  spake  in  praise  of 
others,  but  never  in  his  own. 

"What  a  lesson,  too,  was  his  unwearying  activity. 
I  never  knew  him  waste  a  moment.  His  geniality 
and  humour  brightened  a  home  over  which  the  cloud 
of  sickness  so  often  hung.  Not  even  'midst  my  tears 
can  I  obliterate  the  recollection  of  his  wit  and  fun  ; 
nor  do  I  wish  to,  for  these  were  consecrated  too — the 
man  himself  was  God's." 

On  several  occasions  Mrs.  Spurgeon  has  given  me 
the  privilege  of  speaking  in  her  home  ;  once  Mr. 
Fullerton  joined  me.  The  study  has  always  been 
chosen  as  the  place  for  the  meetings,  for  the  Lord  Jesus 
always  gets  the  best  place  in  her  home.  I  have  felt 
no  greater  honour  could  have  been  conferred  on  me 
than  to  stand  on  the  spot  where  the  world's  preacher 
used  to  sit  to  study,  and  to  be  allowed  there  to  lift  my 
feeble  voice  for  my  Master,  supported  by  the  queenly 
Pastor's  wife,  vho  led  our  praise  at  the  piano. 


CHAPTER   XXIII. 

<§g  the  Jttanjin  of  tfo  line  $m. 

ENTON    and    Mr.   Spurgeon  will  be   two 
names    always   associated    the   one   with 
the   other.     Indeed,   in    some  sense,  Mr. 
Spurgeon  made  Menton,  so  many  visitors 
flocked  there  because  of  his  presence. 

For  quite  a  number  of  winters  he  has  sojourned  in 
that  quiet  nook  by  the  margin  of  the  blue  Medi- 
terranean, sheltered  by  the  Alpes  Maritimes  from  the 
cruel  north  wind. 

In  former  years,  the  little  morning  service  which  he 
conducted  in  his  room  was  greatly  appreciated  by  the 
Christian  people  who  were  wintering  in  Menton : 
sometimes  he  would  have  as  many  as  sixty  crowding 
to  take  part  in  it.  He  simply  expounded  a  passage 
of  Scripture  and  led  in  prayer,  but  blessing  large  and 
lasting  rested  on  this  quiet  ministry.  Two  years  ago 
he  read  through  the  Gospel  according  to  Matthew 
in  this  way,  and  the  last  weeks  of  his  life  were  spent 
in  revising  the  Commentary  which  was  the  outcome 
of  these  talks,  and  which  is  yet  to  be  published  as  a 
posthumous  work. 

After  his  severe  illness  in  the  summer  of  1 891, 
Mrs.  Spurgeon  was  able  to  accompany  her  beloved 
husband  to  the  sunny  South,  and  his  delight  was  great 


1 62  The  Essex  Lad. 

in  taking-  her  to  his  various  resorts  and  pointing  out 
the  beauties  01  the  place  to  her. 

About  three  weeks  before  his  death  he  was  driving 
in  the  suburbs  of  Menton  with  Mr.  Allison  and  his 
private  secretary,  when  a  telegraph  messenger  met 
them  along  the  road,  and  announced  that  he  had  a 
telegram  for  Mr.  Spurgeon.  Mr.  Harrald  opened  it, 
and  read  its  contents  aloud.  It  was  from  their  Royal 
Highnesses  the  Prince  and  Princess  of  Wales,  thanking 
him  for  his  message  of  sympathy  in  reference  to  the 
loss  of  the  Duke  of  Clarence. 

Mr.  Harrald  folded  it  up;  he  said,  "I  will  put  that 
into  my  pocket,  and  take  care  of  it." 
.  Mr.  Spurgeon,  who  seemed  very  much  cheered  to 
receive  such  a  mark  of  respect,  said  : — 

"  No,  you  won't,  I  will  take  care  of  that  myself"  ; 
and  he  placed  it  into  his  own  pocket — there  it  re- 
mained until  he  passed  away. 

To  mourn  over  the  loss  of  such  a  life  would  be 
almost  a  sin.  We  cannot  help  weeping,  but  we  dare 
not  murmur ;  for  his  end  was  so  beautiful.  I  cannot 
describe  the  feelings  which  follow  his  final  with- 
drawal from  our  midst  better  than  my  faithful 
colleague  has  done  in  the  preface  of  the  Memorial 
Volume,  From  the  Pulpit  to  the  Palm- Branch. 

"  Since  this  good  gift  was  to  be  taken  from  us,  we 
are  constrained  to  say  that  he  could  have  gone  from 
our  midst  in  no  better  way.  This  is  not  only  a  matter 
of  faith,  but,  having  tried  to  imagine  other  methods 
of  departure,  we  are  compelled  to  fall  back  on  God's 
way  as  the  wisest  and  best. 

"Had  Mr.  Spurgeon  been  called  suddenl)',  we  should 
have  been  so  stunned  by  the  blow  as  to  have  been 


By  the  Margin  of  the  Blue  Sea. 


163 


scarcely  able  to  stand  upright  beneath  it ;  a  waiting 
time  was,  therefore,  in  mercy,  granted  to  us,  during 
which  the  forces  at  command  were  organized  in  such 
a  way  that,  with  the  exactness  of  a  machine,  all 
worked  smoothly  when  the  terrible  tidings  at  last  came. 


MR.    SPURGEON    AND    MR.    HARRAT.D    BY    THE   SEA. 

"  Had  Mr.  Spurgeon  been  taken  before  such  mar- 
vellous solicitude  was  shown  around  his  sick  bed,  the 
enemies  of  the  truth  would  have  blasphemed  ;    now 


164  The  Essex  Lad. 

they  are  fain  to  be  silent,  seeing  that  even  in  this  life, 
fidelity  to  the  truth,  and  faithfulness  to  conviction 
have  been  so  greatly  honoured. 

"  Had  Mr.  Spurgeon  passed  away  amid  the  fogs  of 
London, we  should  have  imagined  that,had  he  onlybeen 
permitted  to  live  beneath  bluer  skies,  his  life  would 
have  been  prolonged  ;  now  we  thank  God  that  those 
three  bright  months  were  added  to  it,  and  that  he  was 
able,  with  his  beloved  wife,  to  have  such  uninterrupted 
joy  on  earth,  ere  he  passed  to  his  reward  in  heaven." 

A  little  wThile  before  the  end,  Dr.  Harwood  Pattison 
received  a  post  card  from  Menton,  of  which  he  justly 
remarks  "  that  for  beauty  of  thought  and  expression, 
it  seems  worthy  to  rank  with  the  best  specimen  of 
English  letter-writing, 

0  Dear  Friend, — The  best  of  years  be  unto  you. 
Your  card  was  very  sweet.  I  am  very  ill,  weary  and 
low  ;  but  yet  I  am  in  such  tender  hands  that  I  am  by 
no  means  unhappy.  'Let  Him  do  as  seemeth  Him 
good.' 

"  I  am,  indeed,  favoured  with  the  kind  opinion  of 
my  brethren.  I  pray  to  be  more  worthy  of  the  honour 
of  their  love. 

"  I  am  glad  of  the  love  of  yourself  and  your  father, 
who  seems  to  me  to  be  growing  out  on  his  Western 
side — all  good  things  go  that  way.  It  will  be  no  ill 
day  for  me  when  I  go,  in  a  fuller  sense,  to  the  land  of 
the  setting  sun. 

"  Yours,  ever,  most  heartily, 

"C.   H.  Spurgeon." 

Truly,  it  was  no  ill  day  for  him,  when  he  entered 
that  land  of  everlasting  rest,  and  left  the  margin  of 
the  blue  sea  for  the  sea  of  glass  mingled  with  fire. 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

SFhe  $m  of  (Bhfa  mingled  with  <$irt 

iaN  the  31st  day  of  January,  1892,  just  about 
thirty-eight  years  after  the  call  to  New 
Park  Street,  Mr.  Spurgeon,who  had  caused 
such  a  stir  from  the  centre  to  the  circum- 
ference of  the  world,  lay  breathing  his  last  breath 
during  the  solemn  midnight  in  a  quiet  little  chamber 
in  the  Hotel  Beau  Rivage,  Menton.  His  devoted 
wife  and  a  few  friends  stood  around  his  bed,  while 
outside  in  the  night  wind  the  palm  trees  were  waving 
their  branches  as  if  in  token  of  victory.  Truly  a  con- 
queror, through  Christ,  passed  away  that  night. 

On  the  following  morning  a  little  company  again 
stood  in  the  room,  among  whom  were  his  much 
beloved  deacon,  Mr.  Allison,  his  devoted  "  armour- 
bearer,''  Mr.  Harrald,  my  old  College  companion, 
Mr.  Samuels,  of  Birmingham,  and  my  friend  Mr. 
Mackenzie,  who  had  rendered  Mr.  Spurgeon  some 
little  assistance  with  his  camera  during  the  closing 
weeks,  and  others. 

My  friend  told  me  that  as  he  fell  upon  his  knees  in 
that  strange  land,  and  kissed  the  cold  forehead,  he 
fervently  lifted  his  heart  to  God  in  gratitude  for  the 
blessing  he  had  received  as  a  young  man,  in  London, 
many  years  before,  through  those  lips  which  were  now 


1 66 


The  Essex  Lad. 


silent.  He  had  never  told  Mr.  Spurgeon  that  he  was 
converted  through  him,  but  in  the  presence  of  death 
his  heart  overflowed. 


A   MORNING    WALK    AT    MENTON. 


No  sooner  had  the  spirit  fled  than  the  electric 
wire  flashed  the  news  all  round  the  globe  that 
"  our  beloved  Pastor  had  entered  heaven."     The  little 


The  Sea  of  Glass  mingled  with  Fire.         167 

post-office  at  Menton  soon  became  blocked  by  hun- 
dreds of  messages  of  sympathy  arriving  from  all  parts 
of  the  land,  and  sent  by  all  ranks  of  society.  The 
Prince  and  Princess  of  Wales  sent  a  telegram  to  the 
bereaved  widow,  and  after  Mrs.  Spurgeon's  return  to 
England,  the  Princess  of  Wales,  .who  had  gone  to 
Menton,  made  further  sympathetic  inquiries  con- 
cerning her,  and  said  that,  while  she  was  sitting  at  the 
dying  bed  of  her  beloved  son,  the  Duke,  of  Clarence, 
at  Sandringham,  he  made  frequent  references  to 
Mr.  Spurgeon. 

When  the  news  of  his  son's  departure  was  conveyed 
to  Mr.  Spurgeon's  father,  the  venerable  gentleman 
bore  the  intelligence  of  the  sad  event  with  the 
greatest  fortitude,  and  his  first  observation  was,  "  Oh, 
what  a  blessed  meeting  that  must  have  been  between 
Charles  and  his  dear  mother!" 

To  carry  out  the  express  wish  of  his  many  friends 
at  home,  the  body  was  brought  to  England  for 
interment,  and  thus  thousands,  who  had  been  blessed 
by  his  life,  were  enabled  to  pay  a  last  tribute  of 
respect  at  his  burial. 

After  being  embalmed,  the  body  was  placed  in  a 
beautiful  Olive  Casket,  which  was  covered  with 
splendid  palm  branches  sent  by  Mrs.  Spurgeon. 

Amid  the  tears  of  many  friends  in  France,  a 
Memorial  Service  was  held  in  the  Presbyterian 
Church  at  Menton,  and  from  thence  it  was  conveyed 
to  England,  where  it  was  received  by  his  loving 
Church  Officers  and  friends,  and  conveyed  to  the 
scene  of  his  marvellous  ministry. 

Memorial  services  were  held  in  the  great  Taber- 
nacle, with   the   Olive   Casket  canopied   by  beautiful 


1 68  The  Essex  Lad. 

palm  branches,  sent  from  the  place  where  the  Victor 
fell,  lying  in  front  of  the  Preacher's  platform.  On 
the  top  of  the  Olive  Casket  lay  this  faithful  soldier's 
two-edged  sword,  which  he  so  manfully  wielded  for 
so  many  years.  It  was  opened  at  the  Book  of  Isaiah, 
and  a  plain  ribbon  marked  the  passage  which  cut 
right  into  the  Essex  lad's  heart  on  that  memorable 
Sunday  morning. 

Some  60,000  persons  walked  through  the  Taber- 
nacle in  one  short  day  to  view  the  coffin,  and  the 
crowds  at  his  funeral  were  great  beyond  expectation. 
The  respect  and  honour  paid  to  Mr.  Spurgeon's 
memory,  as  the  body  was  borne  to  its  last  resting- 
place,  no  pen  can  fully  describe. 

If  you  have  ever  seen  Her  Majesty  the  Queen  open 
Parliament  in  person,  you  may  form  some  idea  of  the 
crowds  that  gathered  along  the  route.  Hundreds  of 
policemen  were  needed  to  regulate  the  throng.  The 
shops  were  all  closed  for  miles.  Even  the  public- 
houses  acknowledged  his  sterling  worth  by  having 
black  shutters  put  up  at  their  windows. 

The  line  of  carriages  which  conveyed  the  mourners 
formed  a  procession  for  miles,  and  as  we  passed  the 
Stockwell  Orphanage  the  sight  was  a  most  touching 
one.  The  dear  orphan  children  were  dressed  in  black, 
and  wished  to  pay  homage  to  their  departed  bene- 
factor and  friend  by  singing  a  hymn,  as  the  hearse, 
carrying  his  body,  slowly  passed  the  gates.  But  the 
tears  and  sobs  checked  the  singing,  and  to  see 
those  dear  little  children,  broken-hearted,  told  how 
much  he  was  beloved  by  the  Fatherless  he  had  so 
befriended. 

Dr.  Pierson  spoke  wonderful  words  in   the   Taber- 


The  Sea  of  Glass  mingled  with  Fire.         169 

nacle,  and  Pastor  Archibald  Brown  touched  all  hearts 
by  his  tender  utterances  at  the  grave. 

Thus,  in  the  presence  of  many  thousands  of  true- 
hearted  friends,  from  every  part  of  the  world,  all  that 
was  mortal  of  Charles  H addon  Spurgeon,  was  borne 
to  its  resting-place  at  Norwood  Cemetery,  and  a  plain 
slab  with  his  name  upon  it  marks  the  spot  where  he 
awaits  the  resurrection  of  the  blessed. 


THE   OLIVE-CASKET    BE.NEATH    THE    PALM-BRANCHES. 


IMPORTANT   BOOKS 

BY   C.  H.  SPURGEON. 


MORXIXG  BY  MOBXIXG;  or  Daily  Readings  for 
the  Family  or  Closet.     121110.     Si. 

EVENING  BY  EVENING;  or  Reading  at  Eventide 
for  the  Family  or  Closet.     i2mo.     5i. 

"  These  two  volumes  are  among  the  best  now  offered  to  the 
public.  We  have  seen  a  number  of  similar  books  desigr^-d  for 
daily  reading,  but  none  so  well  adapted  to  the  wants  of  the  gen- 
eral reader  as  these.  He  has  selected  such  texts  as  contain  the 
truths  that  will  in  every  way  help  the  reader  to  a  better,  holier, 
purer  life."  college  monthly. 

JOHN  PEOSTGHJIAX'S  TALK.  177  pp.  i6mo. 
75  cts.     320,000  copies  of  this  book  have  been  sold  in  England. 

JOIIX  PEOEGISH AX?S  PICTIRES.  iS2Pp.  i6mo. 
75  cts.     100,000  copies  of  this  volume  have  been  sold  in  England. 

JOH\  PLOIGHMAXIS  TALK  AXD  PIC- 
TIRES  in  one  volume.     121110.     359  pp.     Si. 

"  'John  Ploughman's  Talk  and  Pictures'  gives  in  homely 
words  more  truth  and  good  common  sense  than  we  have  seen 
packed  into  so  small  a  compass  for  a  long  time." 

golden  rule. 

LECTURES  TO  HY  STITBEYTS.  A  selection  from 
Addresses  delivered  to  the  students  of  the  Pastor's  College. 
First  Series.     121110.     297  pp.     Si. 

"It  abounds  in  words  of  wisdom;  it  is  rich  in  humor,  but 
richer  in  human  and  spiritual  experience."       nonconformist. 

LECTURES  TO  3I\r  STIDEXTS.  With  illustra- 
tions of  posture  and  action.     Second  Series.    Si. 

COJUIEYTIYG    AXD    COMMENTARIES:    Two 

Lectures  addressed  to  the  students  of  the  Pastor's  College,  Metro- 
politan Tabernacle,  together  with  a  Catalogue  of  Bible  Commen- 
taries and  Expositions.     i2mo.     Si. 

THE  SAIYT  AND  HIS  SAVIOUR;  or  the  Progress 
of  the  Soul  in  the  knowledge  of  Jesus,     ismo.     432  pp.     Si. 

^irjeriGaii  Tract  Society, 

150  NASSAU  ST.  and  304  FOURTH  AV.,  NEW  YORK. 
BOSTON.  54  Bromfield  Street.         PHILADELPHIA.  1512  Chestnut  Street. 
ROCHESTER,  93  State  Street.  CHICAGO,  211  Wabash  Avenue. 

CINCINNATI,  176  Elm  Street.  SAN  FRANCISCO,  735  Market  Street. 


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